


I Fought the Law

by IronQuotes



Category: Women's Soccer RPF
Genre: F/F, Sorry it got smutty
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-10
Updated: 2021-02-08
Packaged: 2021-03-13 10:35:31
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 11
Words: 50,056
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28652100
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/IronQuotes/pseuds/IronQuotes
Summary: Tobin clears her throat, "hi, um, Christen, right? I'm Tobin. And I guess you're my lawyer"Christen straightens, having located a manila file, she remains facing the window and flips open the first page. "So, Ms. Heath. Ah yes. You're my graffiti artist. Charges have been brought against you for criminal damage. I guess it would be best to start from the beginning. Just tell me what happened. Take a seat."Just as Tobin starts to sit down, Christen turns around. Tobin is sure time slows down as she is met with the most beautiful woman she has ever seen.Tobin, the graffiti artist, meet Christen, the lawyer defending her.First attempt. Let me know your thoughts.
Relationships: Tobin Heath/Christen Press
Comments: 110
Kudos: 520





	1. Chapter 1

"Tobes. Shoes. Now." Cindy commanded, pushing her daughter's feet from the coffee table. Tobin paused her game with a long sigh. 

"Oh, leave me alone Mom. I'm 27 years old, I can deal with my own problems", Tobin responded, getting increasingly frustrated with her mom's nagging. 

"Not while you're under my roof. I don't care how old you are, you'll do as you say. You got yourself into this mess Tobin, and I'm trying my hardest to get you out of it. Now, for the last time, get moving. We're leaving in 2 minutes." 

With that, Cindy headed for the door, grabbing her keys and purse on the way out. Tobin threw her controller across the sofa, sitting up with her head in her hands. This whole situation was stupid, how had it come to this? With an audible groan, she lifted herself from the sofa, grabbed her snapback, jacket and shoes and followed her mom out to the car. 

"Go on then, your appointment is in.. 3 minutes!" Cindy said, ushering Tobin out of the car, having pulled up at the side of the road. "You're not missing this Tobin. You need to deal with the consequences of your actions." 

"I get it mom, I'm going", Tobin breathed out, slowly reaching for the door handle. 

Cindy grabbed her arm. "I love you, Tobes. You know that, don't you?" 

"I know mom, I love you too. I'd best head in now. Will you collect me in an hour?" 

"Of course sweetheart, I hope it goes well. She's supposed to be one of the best around. I'm sure this will all blow over soon enough." Tobin nodded, chiding herself internally for the disappointed look her mother was giving her. She swung open the car door, making her way onto the sidewalk. 

Tobin looked up at the imposing building in front of her. The plaque to the side of the revolving door reading "Davidson & Reed". She pushed her way through the revolving door, into the entrance atrium, making her way across the highly polished marble floor, to a large reception desk. As she came to a stop in front of the desk, the receptionist looked up from behind her computer screen. 

"Yes, how can I help you?" The pretty blonde asked curtly. 

"Well, firstly, I have an appointment with a solicitor. Secondly, it would help you tremendously for me to have your number", Tobin stated confidently, with a wink at the end for good measure. 

The blonde rolled her eyes, "Name?"

"It's Tobin, Tobin Heath", she responded, feigning disappointment at the rejection of her advances. 

"No, I need the name of the solicitor you're due to meet with"

Tobin fumbled to get her phone out of her pocket. "Um, let me try and find the email. My mom arranged this for me, so I'm not sure". 

The receptionist stifled a laugh, "wow, even if I did give you my number, with organization skills this bad, would it even get used?" Tobin felt the blush rising from her neck to her cheeks. "What was the name again? Your name? I'll see if I can find your appointment that way".

"Tobin. Heath." Tobin muttered, embarrassed that she'd most definitely lost the upper hand in the conversation and how the receptionist had forgotten her name so quickly. 

"Right, you're booked in to see Ms. Press. Third floor, through the gates here and take the elevator. Nice to meet you Ms. Heath." With that, the receptionist waved her through. 

She trudged through the gates, hitting the elevator call button with more force than necessary. Tobin made her way in to the elevator and up to the third floor. 

The doors opened and Tobin made her way to the entrance of the third floor. The office was a sea of glass walls, open plan office space with large offices occupying the corners of the floor. There was a cacophony of noise - phones ringing, people talking frantically both to one another and into their phones, people milling about carrying bundles of paperwork. There was an air of urgency to everything happening. For Tobin, her personality was the opposite to urgency. She favored taking the slow lane, with a c'est la vie attitude to life. "I could never work here", she thought to herself, "how do people do this to themselves? It's putting me on edge!" 

She made her way over to yet another reception desk, this time faced with a larger set lady, with greying hair and wrinkle lines around her eyes which were clearly a result of the radiant smile that seemed to be plastered to her face. She met Tobin's eyes and Tobin couldn't help but reciprocate the warm greeting.

"Good morning, are you Ms. Heath?", Tobin nodded in response, "here to see Ms. Press I understand. Oh, you are a lucky one. She's a good egg, that Ms. Press. Take a seat over there and her PA will be over to collect you shortly". 

"Thank you, Marjorie" Tobin replied, having noted the nameplate at the front of the desk.

"You're welcome dear, all the best", Marjorie smiled back at her. 

Tobin wandered over to the seating area, taking her phone out to scroll through social media while she waited. She opened Instagram. Her post from that morning, a spray painted canvas in the shades of a sunset, had received 47,712 likes and they were still coming in. "Huh, so people do appreciate my art work then", Tobin thought to herself, chuckling internally at the irony of the situation. 

"Tobin Heath?" The question brought Tobin out of her thoughts. Her head snapped up to see a short but attractive man, athletically built and wearing an impeccable suit. He held his hand out to her. Tobin stood quickly and grabbed his hand to shake. "I'm Vince, nice to meet you", he stated, "I'm Christen's.. sorry, I mean, Ms. Press' PA. If you'd like to follow me, I'll take you round to her office."

"Thanks Vince, good to meet you too." 

They began to walk down the corridor, formed from glass walls either side of them. "How's your day going, Vince?" Tobin asked, keen to fill the silence. 

"Oh, it's okay thank you. It's actually only my third day here, so I'm still getting used to the place", he replied, Tobin sensing his nervous energy. 

"Well you seem to fit in well", Tobin replied, always wanting to help people feel at ease. 

"Thanks" Vince replied, "I'm really nervous to be honest, I really wanted this job, Ms. Press is amazing and she actually makes a difference to people's lives. I just want to try and be part of that. But it's also a cut throat business, you know? Anyway, we're here." He nods his head towards a large wooden door, with a brass nameplate reading "Christen Press" in the middle of it. He knocks a couple of times before gently opening the door just a crack. "Hi Ms. Press. I have a Tobin Heath here to see you". 

"I've told you Vince, call me Christen, please" comes a soft voice from inside. "Send Ms Heath in." 

Vince opens the door wider, allowing Tobin to enter the office. "Good luck", he wishes her with a wink before closing the door behind her. 

Tobin enters the office. Located in the corner of the building, the square office has two external walls of floor to ceiling windows, overlooking a local park. The other two walls, also formed of glass, have Roman blinds for privacy from the rest of the office. In front of one of the sets of windows sits a large wooden desk, with a couple of chairs facing it. In front of the other windows are a couple of sofas, with a coffee table in between, a small fridge and a shelving unit with different plants inserted into it. Behind the desk, rummaging through a filing cabinet, Tobin assumes is Ms. Press. Or Christen, as she insisted to Vince. She sees her black heels, tanned legs partially hidden by a grey pencil skirt, with a white blouse tucked into it. Above that she sees a mass of black curls, the untamed nature of her hair contrasting with the formal outfit. Tobin sucks in a breath, taken back by the twist in her stomach. "This is stupid", she thinks, "I'm looking at the back of someone I've never met. Pull it together Heath". 

Tobin clears her throat, "hi, um, Christen, right? I'm Tobin. And I guess you're my lawyer" 

Christen straightens, having located a manila file, she remains facing the window and flips open the first page. "So, Ms. Heath. Ah yes. You're my graffiti artist. Charges have been brought against you for criminal damage. I guess it would be best to start from the beginning. Just tell me what happened. Take a seat."

Just as Tobin starts to sit down, Christen turns around. Tobin is sure time slows down as she is met with the most beautiful woman she has ever seen. Raven hair and piercing green eyes stand out instantly. Her shirt buttons, although closed to a modest level, reveal enough chest to leave Tobin's mouth dry. 

"Wow". It leaves Tobin's mouth without her noticing. "Oh, jeez, no. I mean, wow." 

Christen looks up at her through her eyelashes and her mouth turns up in a smile. 

"Pull yourself together Tobin", she thinks, "you look like an idiot! Say something else!" 

"Um, sorry.. just.. you're beautiful." She stumbles over her words. "But you're a lawyer? You shouldn't be a lawyer, you should be a model. Or something. Not because I don't think you're smart. I'm sure you're smart. Oh no. This is.. embarrassing."

Tobin turns beetroot red and casts her eyes downwards. Christen bursts out laughing. "Are you quite done?", She manages to get out through her laughter. 

Tobin nods, not removing her eyes from the floor. 

"Great", Christen states, "let's get started".


	2. Chapter 2

*2 months before*

"Good session everyone! Looking sharp." Laura shouted across the field to the team as they trudged towards her. It had been an intense session, with the team gearing up for the season. They were mostly a young side, recently brought together and still with a lot to learn about each other. 

Lindsey sidled up to Tobin and threw her arm around her, "it's good to be back on a team with you Toby, I missed you" she pouted. 

"Call me that name again, Horan, and you'll be missing me all over again when I get Laura to trade your butt back outta here" Tobin chided. 

"No you wouldn't, you love me, don't deny it. You wanted me here, in fact, I know you asked for me to be traded here." Lindsey responded in a sing song voice. Tobin shrugged out of her grip, poking her in the ribs for good measure. 

"I have no idea what you're talking about. Laura's the coach, she chooses who comes in to this team. I'm merely just a player. A great player, but just a player." 

"Oh yes, Tobin, we all know you're a player", Lindsey says, rolling her eyes and laughing, a few other players who had overheard the conversation joining in with the laughter. 

Tobin just shakes her head gently. In truth, she's not really a player, she just gets a lot of attention. Maybe she's guilty of playing on that attention, but the reality of it is, it's been over a year since she's been with anyone. There have been plenty of opportunities, from casual flings to going on dates, but Tobin hasn't been feeling it recently. 

Tobin can't get her head around her feelings at the moment. She's got her soccer and that's going great. Yeah, there was the awkward expansion draft, but now she's settled and she's playing the best soccer of her life. She has a great relationship with her coach and her GM. In truth, she did request the trade for Lindsey, although she'll never admit it. She knew it was the right move for the club but it definitely helps having her 'little sister' at her side. Tobin is living back at home with her mom for now, while she apartment hunts and gets a feel for where she would like to move to in the area. After a long time away, she's reconnecting with her family, making up for lost time with her sisters, nieces and nephews when she's not training. Her hobbies are keeping her occupied, with the main one being her art. When she moved back, Cindy was getting frustrated with paint getting on the floors of the guest room Tobin was calling home for now, so she moved her outside, until the perfectly manicured lawn suddenly had streaks of red, blue and orange paint disturbing the sea of green. Finally she'd cracked and cleared half of the garage to be Tobin's art studio. Tobin called it her creative home. 

Maybe it was the unrest, the uncertainty of the world, the unfairness and inequality that coarsed through the veins of her country. Feeling useless and insignificant when the world demanded change. Having a platform but failing to see the impact of a retweet or an Instagram story. Copying someone else's message just didn't seem to help with the feeling of wanting to do something and be the change. 

As she neared the changing rooms, Laura called out to her, "Tobin, my office please once you've showered and changed". Tobin nodded, "sure coach. Anything I need to be worried about?" 

"Never", replied Laura. "see you shortly". 

Tobin stayed under the warm spray of the shower for longer than necessary wondering what Laura could need her for. She'd trained well in the off-season, figured she'd done pretty well in pre-season. She made her way out of the shower, drying off quickly before pulling on shorts and a tank top, brushing her wet hair and throwing a snapback on to keep it out of her eyes. She ran up the stairs 2 at a time to Laura's office, knocking on the partially open door and not waiting for an answer before walking in. Behind her desk sat Laura, paperwork, game plans and formations scattered in front of her. The other side of her desk sat Alyse, the teams GM. 

Alyse stood up, "come in Tobin and sit down - do me a favor and close that door behind you, would you?"   
Tobin pushed the door shut with a click and sat down in the chair next to Alyse. "Should I be worried..?" She asked.

Laura started, "Tobin, we've been discussing your role with the club. I know you're new to the side, but you're our most mature player on the pitch" 

"Are you calling me old?" Tobin rebuffed with a nervous laugh. 

"In a way, yes" laughed Laura. "Look, you smashed pre-season, I see your work rate and the younger kids look up to you as a mentor. We've seen you staying after practice to help the rookies with shooting, giving tips and shagging balls for them. It doesn't go unnoticed."  
"If I may cut in" says Alyse, "Tobin, we'd really like it if you would be club captain this season. We know you're new in and it's a lot of responsibility, but you have it in you and we think you can lead us to the type of success we want. What do you think?" 

Tobin's mouth fell open, "yes! Yes! I'd love to! Thank you, it means a lot". 

"Awesome! That's all, now go rest, we've got a championship to win" Alyse says while patting Tobin on the arm. 

"Thank you both, honestly, I really appreciate your trust in me", Tobin says while heading for the door. 

"Make us proud, Tobin. See you tomorrow" says Laura. 

Tobin leaves the training ground with a skip in her step. Maybe this is what she needs, the extra responsibility, to officially become the mentor to the rookies, to be the onfield direction for the team to take them to victory. Newly inspired, she stops by an art supply shop on the way home, picking up spray paints in a variety of colours with an idea in her head of what she's going to paint next. She gets back in the car with the vision coming to life in her head. Getting closer to home, she drives under a bridge, noticing a large square piece of grey concrete in the middle of the bridge, where the two arcs meet in the middle. She thinks about its presence in the eyeline of all those walking and driving past, how sad it is to see such a blank canvas, the colour of the sky during the middle of a rainstorm, the colour of gloom. Looking back, she really wishes she'd taken another route home.. 

After her painting escapade keeping her up half the night, Tobin sprints towards the practice pitch as fast as her legs will take her, already running late. She rips open the door and stops abruptly at the sight of Alyse and Laura, grim looks upon their faces. 

"Is everything okay?" Asks Tobin, confused after the last time she left them, where the mood had been positive to say the least. Alyse looks to her left and Tobin follows her glance to see two police officers staring back at her. 

"Tobin Heath? You're under arrest for criminal damage"


	3. Chapter 3

*Present Day*

"And that's when they took me to the station" Tobin finishes, finally looking up to meet Christen's eyes. "They interviewed me. Told me they were charging me and I guess that's when my mom phoned you. They let me go pretty quickly."

"So, let me get this straight, you stop at the art store to buy spray paints to use at home. There's CCTV footage of you doing this by the way, the prosecutor told me they have it. Then on your way home, you have this epiphany that you must graffiti this particular part of this particular bridge?"

"Yes!" Answers Tobin, exasperated. "I didn't plan to do it, I just saw it and it's like it clicked with me. I had to do something more. Yes, I have 700,000 whatever followers on Instagram, but this, this bridge, how many people do you think see it every day? Adults, children, everyone! I understand it's criminally wrong, but I wouldn't change my actions". She pauses, "will you at least tell me what you think?"

"Well I think you're in trouble Tobin, I don't know how I can defend this" Christen starts.

"No" Tobin interrupts, "not the situation, the artwork, what do you think?"

Christen takes a minute to study the mural Tobin is accused of creating on the bridge. It combines Black Lives Matter symbols with equality and diversity icons, a mix of colors and symbols and quotes referencing equality for all and peace and justice. In all honesty, it's beautiful, Christen has seen it before. She saw it in the local paper, then took a walk to the bridge in person to witness it first hand. She has a picture of it on her phone, she's sent it to her sisters and her friends, but she won't admit any of that to Tobin. That's also why she took the case when Cindy phoned. In fact, she said yes before they'd even discussed timescales and contractual arrangements. As soon as she heard "you know, the bridge with the graffiti", she knew this was a case for her.

What she didn't expect, however, was for the artist of the mural to be quiet so hot. She knew she flustered Tobin and she was trying her hardest not to show that she was just as affected in return. As Tobin had gone through the day of the painting, she'd had to pinch herself to refocus when she found herself staring at Tobin's bottom lip, her eyes or her tanned and toned arms. This wasn't part of the deal.

"Christen?" Tobin asked. Christen suddenly realized she'd been silent for a while. "I was asking what you thought of it?"

"Sorry, yes, it's beautiful, it really is. The message, the colors, it really is something Tobin. However.."

"However? That doesn't sound good. What don't you like?"

"The bottom right corner Tobin", Christen responds sternly.

"What do you mean?" Tobin asked, confused, "is it the blending of the colours? That blemish, there" she says pointing, "is because of a rivet in the steel work of the bridge, so I had to paint around it"

"No Tobin, the far bottom right, what's that?"

"Oh right, easy, that's my name, see? The elongated T over the 'obin'? It's how I sign all of my artwork", Tobin answers, pleased with herself.

Christen can only slap her hand to her head in disbelief and laugh at the naivety of the woman in front of her.

"If I can offer any advice to you, next time you decide to damage public property, please don't sign your name on it!"

Tobin chuckles embarrassed, "ha, I guess I didn't really think about that at the time. Have I made your job harder?"

"In a way, yes. They probably would have figured it out anyway, but we'll deal with it. Now tell me about your job, I need to know about your character to understand what I'm working with here"

"Oh, so you want to know more about me, hey?" Jokes Tobin, waggling her eyebrows.

"Tobin! I'm being serious! What do you do for a living? Besides deface public property"

"Hey, you said you liked it, you can't take that back now" they both smile, enjoying how easily the conversation flows. "I'm a professional soccer player, I turned pro out of college and have played for a few teams here in the US and abroad. I grew up here and just recently signed back here to be closer to my family."

"Okay, so if I Google you, what will it tell me?" asks Christen. This is one of her favorite questions in understanding more about her clients.

Tobin stops a minute, looking out the window while she thinks. "Um, you'll probably see some highlight reels, I like to be as creative on the pitch as I am off it. Maybe a picture or two of my ex and I from when I played in France. Then Nike shoots. I do summer soccer camps with local kids. I mostly keep out of the limelight, so don't worry, nothing incriminating."

"And what about your love life now? Any partners? Anyone that can trip us up or say anything character damaging?"

"Is this still to do with the case or are you asking if I'm single?" Tobin's flirtatious side creeps back out, she leans her head to the side and raises one eyebrow.

"Ms. Heath! It's a routine question. Yes or no?" Christen deadpans, struggling to stay professional in the situation.

"Ms Heath, eh? Fine" sighs Tobin, "there's no one anywhere, I'm a lonely loner who spends my Friday nights with my mom, sisters, nieces and nephews. The only other women in my life are those at the club, and they're so much like family that.. ew, no."

Christen's eyebrows raise at the mention of "women" and her suspicions are confirmed. There may be a tiny part of her internally celebrating.

"What about you then, Christen? Anyone special in your life?" Tobin continues.

"This is about you, not me!" Christen reddens.

"No gentleman suitor.. or gentlewoman suitor..?" Tobin probes.

They lock eyes and Christen can't help but laugh, she gathers herself to answer.

They are interrupted by a small knock at the door, and it opens to reveal Vince. "Sorry Ms. Christen, I just thought I'd better let you know your next appointment is waiting in reception. It's the self-defense case".

"Thanks Vince, we're almost done here anyhow. Oh and drop the Ms please. I'm 30, not 50!" She laughs as Vince closes the door.

She turns back to Tobin, "right, next steps, I'm going to get working on a case, see what we can do here. The likelihood is, it'll probably be some kind of deal, it's a first offense, it looks like you do a lot in the community and it's nothing major so I'm sure the punishment won't be too strenuous. For you, next steps are to do nothing. Don't answer any questions about this from anyone. Nothing online please, just keep quiet about it until it's over, got it?"

"Sure thing, don't talk, don't do anything and I guess don't graffiti again, right?"

Christen rolls her eyes, raising from her chair, "yes Tobin, no graffiti and nothing to the media and nothing online". She moves around the desk, hand extended to shake Tobin's. Tobin stands, but in doing so, ends up closer than anticipated to Christen.

Their eyes meet and Christen can feel Tobin's breath on her lips. "This needs to stop" she thinks, "just move away". But she can't, she's rooted to the spot.

Tobin breaks the silence, "I meant it, you know, you are beautiful. And now I KNOW you're smart" she laughs, never breaking eye contact and still not releasing her hand.

Christen finds it in herself to step away, "arrange a meeting in a couple of weeks with Vince before you go, I'll have a plan by then of how we're going to lay this to rest".

She turns away, collecting Tobin's file and the notes from their meeting and heading to the filing cabinet.

"Shall I arrange it for dinner, or are you more of a lunch date kind of girl?" Asks Tobin. She'd never normally be this brazen but she can't let this go.

"Goodbye Tobin" answers Christen, determined to not let her see the smile on her face.

Tobin leaves the room and with the click of the door, Christen releases the breath she didn't realize she'd been holding. Who is this woman and where did she come from? Christen hadn't felt a connection like that with anyone in a very long time.

Vince enters the office again, "I booked Tobin back in for a couple of weeks on Monday at 12pm. I checked your diary and the slot was free so I hope that's okay with you" he says timidly.

"Yes thank you, that's great. Hey Vince, you don't need to be worried about upsetting or annoying me you know? I know I'm technically your boss but I want you to be yourself around me, okay? We have to work together all day, every day, so I want us to get on. Is my next client the last of the day?"

"Yes, 3 till 4 and then you're clear for the rest of the day" he confirms.

"Well, in that case, what's your plans for this evening? Why don't we go and grab a coffee after this and get to know each other a little better?" She asks.

"Well my husband finishes work at 6 and we'd planned to go to dinner, but coffee sounds great".

"Fantastic, right, let's get this last meeting done and head out of the the day". Christen turns back to the filing cabinet, locating her last case of the day and getting the file out.

Christen and Vince head out of the office at 4pm, Vince nervously enquiring if Christen wants him to make up the time missed today tomorrow evening.

"No! Don't be silly! I promise you, I'm not that kind of boss. All I worry about is you getting your job done. I want you to be in charge of your hours. If you want to flex your time or you need to head out early one day, just let me know."

"Okay boss, if you're sure. Look, I'm really motivated on feedback, so if I'm doing anything wrong or it doesn't work for you, promise you'll let me know?" asks Vince, still unsure how he landed this job.

"Sure thing", Christen responds, linking her arm through Vince's, "do you drink Vince?"

"Err, yes, but not much, I promise!" Vince's voice raises in defense.

"Right, we're not having coffee, we're going for cocktails" she announces, dragging Vince down the road with renewed pace.

A couple of hours and a couple of Cosmo's later, Christen and Vince are laughing over stories from Christen's cases.

"No, you're making it up now.."

"I'm not! I promise you! He turned up to court in the full clown outfit. And I'm not talking just the suit. The suit, the wig, the full face paint, but my personal favorite, the clown shoes! They were so big, he couldn't wear them on the witness stand so he had to take them off to take the stand!" Christen repeats the incredulous story which is one of her favorites to help people understand what she puts up with.

They're both crying with laughter, Christen trying to not let the tears fall in fear her make up will be ruined.

Vince turns serious suddenly, "really though Christen, thank you so much for offering me this role. I know you joke about clients but I have so much respect for what you do and who you represent. I know I'm just a PA to you, but I want to do what I can to help."

Christen is a defense lawyer, but she's very selective about her clients. Most of her clients are criminals, but they're also victims in their own right, domestic abuse victims who have retaliated, vulnerable adults who have been exploited by criminals or young people in with the wrong crowd. When she decided to become a defense lawyer, she couldn't bring herself to defend bad people, those with a bad heart, instead wanting to help people in a bad situation who need someone on their side. As a result, a lot of her work was pro bono, or at a cheap cost. Much to her bosses dismay, she tended to do billable work in the evening so it didn't get added to the defendants account. However, she was also one of the firm's best lawyers. She thought in ways other people couldn't and most of her colleagues came to her for informal consultations on their cases. She was happy to help, as long as the firm supported her on her endeavours.

"I didn't give you this job for any other reason than that you deserved it, you don't need to thank me, you earned this".

Vince picked up his glass, clinked it against Christens and downed the remainder of his drink. That was it, that was the moment Christen was after, the breakdown of defenses and the human connection that she knew meant Vince would stop being so on edge with her.

A young man approaches their table, eyes focused on Christen. His dark eyes, dark hair and dark skin bringing an air of mystery along with him. He wouldn't be Christen's normal type, but she does find herself tracking him with her eyes. "What is it with all these good looking people today?" She think to herself.

"Hey, is this seat taken?" The young man asks Christen.

Before she can answer, a groan comes from her companion. "David, stop it! I'm serious!" David laughs and Vince rolls his eyes. "I'm so sorry Christen, this is my stupid, immature husband who thinks it's hilarious to try and get me fired!"

Christen joins in with the laughter, "nice to meet you David, please, feel free to join us, unless you both need to rush off?"

"Not at all", David replies, "I'd love to join you, find out who this woman is that's captivated my husband's heart." Christen's eyes widen, "I'm serious! I'm half convinced he's going to leave me for you!" David finishes with a laugh. "right, what are you drinking?"

David heads off to the bar with their drinks order and Christen turns to Vince. "you know Vince, I think this is going to be the start of a beautiful friendship".

Vince smiles, takes a deep breath, then shakes his head, turning his eyes back to his empty glass.

Christen notices, knitting her eyebrows together in confusion, "what is it? You look like you want to say something?"

"This might be inappropriate, and you don't have to answer me if it is. But what's the deal with you and Tobin from earlier? Have you already met her before? Because the meeting said first consultation, but.." he trails off.

"Nope", Christen replies, popping the 'p'. "That was the first time we'd met." She pauses, unsure whether she should continue. "Why did you think it wasn't?"

"Oh, just when I interrupted, I really felt like I'd interrupted if you get what I mean. Then when Tobin left your office, she was grinning like the cat who'd got the cream."

Christen laughs, unsurprised after how their meeting had ended, but also giddy that Tobin was feeling the same way. She looks up to see David heading back their way, trying to balance 3 cocktail glasses through the crowd. He makes it back to the table and takes a seat opposite Christen, next to Vince.

They finish off their drinks and part ways, Christen opting to walk home, hoping the fresh air will help to clear her head. She orders takeout from the Mexican place in the ground floor of her apartment block ahead of time, stopping in to collect it on her way past. She tucks in to her meal while reviewing case notes for a couple of clients the following day.

Getting in to bed, Christen gets ready to settle down. She sets her alarm and puts her phone to charge. Her eyes are automatically drawn to the Instagram icon on her home screen. She opens the app and navigates to Tobin's page. She convinces herself it's necessary as she needs to know her clients. Normally, she'd delegate this to Vince, but he's new, so she'd better take the lead on it. Or at least that's how she justifies it to herself.

She falls into the depths of sleep with thoughts of a certain athletic artist on her mind.


	4. Chapter 4

Tobin leaves the office, closing the door behind her gently. She shakes her head, trying to clear the fog and understand what just happened. "who the hell is that woman?" 

Vince notices her dazed expression, "everything ok Ms Heath?" 

She rubs her hands over her face, partially to disguise the dorky grin she can't shake and approaches Vince's desk. 

"Christen told me to make another appointment with you for a couple of weeks time"

"No problem at all, any time or date work for you?"

A thought crosses Tobin's mind, "actually yes, I need it to be lunchtime. Any day works, just between 12 and 2"

Vince scrolls through the calendar, looking for a suitable time. "How about two weeks on Monday, 12pm?" 

"Perfect", Tobin flashes her perfect smile at Vince, "see you in a couple of weeks Vince". 

She skips away from Christen's office, making sure to say goodbye as she passes Marjorie. She opts to take the stairs back to the ground floor, going two at a time, with a renewed vigour. She pushes through the door into the reception area, heading towards the revolving door, having completely forgotten her rejected advances just an hour before with the receptionist. 

She heads out into the sunny street, looking out for her mom's car. Satisfied she hasn't arrived yet, Tobin pulls her phone out and quickly flicks onto Instagram. Her post from this morning is up to just over 60,000 likes. She smiles automatically, grateful to see other people appreciating her work. She's always been nervous putting her artwork out. It's deeply personal, reflecting her moods, thoughts and feelings and she always feels like she's laying herself bare when she publishes a piece of art online. She has a quick scroll through the comments, smiling wider at the compliments and heart emojis filling the page in front of her. 

Just as she's about to put her phone back in her pocket, she sees a notification appear on the Instagram app. She taps it and laughs out loud, bewildered and smug all at the same time. The notification reads, @christenpress has started following you. She immediately sends her a message on the app:

@tobinheath: let me guess, research?

She locks her phone and returns it to her pocket as she sees her mom's car pull up to the sidewalk. She jumps in, greeting her mom with a kiss on the cheek. 

"What was that for?" asks Cindy, taken aback by the significant mood change from just an hour or so ago. 

"Thank you mom and I wanted to say I'm sorry." She takes a deep breath, "I acted like a brat this morning. Thank you for arranging my lawyer."

"Don't worry about it sweetheart, I know it's been stressful for you. How did it go?" 

"It went well, I'm not sure what happens now, I just need to wait for Christen... Ms. Press, to come up with a plan of action. She's told me I'm not to talk to any media about it, post anything online or paint any graffiti over private property any time soon" 

Cindy laughs, "Christen eh? That's positive though, it sounds like she knows what she's doing, clearly put you in your place! Is she the reason for your change in mood by any chance..?" 

"Maybe, but it's not like that. I just want to get this sorted, take my punishment and move on from all of this. I really did think I was doing a good thing mom. Maybe it was a wrong thing, but I promise it was for the right reasons". 

"I know Tobes, I know you meant no harm", Cindy reached out for her daughter's hand. "Right, where to?"

"Any chance you fancy heading to training with me? The sessions will be pretty much done, but I need to catch up with Laura and Alyse about today." 

"Sure, is Lindsey going to be there? I'd love a catch up with my other soccer superstar daughter!" 

"Yes mom", Tobin chuckles, "she'll be there". 

They pull away from the lawyers office, headed to the training facility. 

They head in through the main entrance and pass straight through to the practice field. Laura has the team huddled around her, giving the post practice talk, praising the team for their effort. 

Lindsey spots Cindy walking towards them. "Hey ma!" She shouts, getting an eye roll from Laura and a chuckle from the rest of the team. 

"Anyway, enough for today everyone, rest and recover and I'll see you tomorrow morning". Laura ends the huddle and turns towards Tobin and Cindy. "Cindy! Nice to finally meet you, I've heard a lot about you" 

"All good I hope! I'm playing taxi to this one", pointing her thumb at Tobin, "thought I'd come in so I can catch up with Lindsey, hope you don't mind the interruption, Tobin thought you'd be done". 

"No bother at all". Laura turns to Tobin, "and how are you, our little resident convict?" 

"I'm not a convict yet!" Tobin quips. "Hey coach, can I have a chat with you and Alyse? I've just finished with the lawyer so wanted to update you both". 

Cindy nudges Lindsey, still both in earshot. "Tobes has a thing for the lawyer", adding a wink and a nudge for effect. 

Tobin groans loudly, "no mother, I do not", but the pink hue spreading across her face would suggest otherwise. 

"Oh, has our wickle Toby got a wickle crush on the pwetty lawyer?" Lindsey teases. 

"I don't need to hear this" Tobin mumbles, walking back towards the club house. 

Laura, Cindy and Lindsey giggle, all secretly pleased to see Tobin show a little interest in this new woman. Laura jogs to catch up with Tobin, throwing a goodbye over her shoulder to the other two women. 

They head up to Alyse's office, and find her working away on her laptop. 

"Hey boss, can I have a word? I've just come back from the lawyer's office". 

Alyse shuts the lid to her laptop and gestures to the seats in front of her desk. 

"How did it go?" Alyse asks, keen to understand where they are with this potential PR headache. 

"The lawyer is coming up with a game plan for us, but it sounds like it should be okay. They'll likely be a deal, plead guilty with some kind of community punishment, but I shouldn't be going to jail" Tobin finishes with a chuckle. 

"Not funny Tobin", replies Alyse. "Look, somehow, we've got away with no one realising you were the graffiti artist, so we've managed to keep you out of the public eye on this. If there's any way your deal can include privacy, I need you to request it. You know my thoughts on this, I loved the art work and quite frankly, I thought it was brave of you to create it. However, the board are concerned about how it might make us look" 

"Thanks boss, I know how it could look on the club. I'll see what Christen says about it", Tobin nods at Alyse. 

"Anyway", Laura starts, "big game this weekend. This one is a must win, okay?"

It's not been the best start to the season, 2 wins, 1 draw and 2 losses, in that order, hasn't put them on the best trajectory. If they don't turn it around soon, their season is going to be over before they hit halfway. 

"Can I suggest something?" Tobin asks. Knowing her position as Captain means she should be coming up with ideas, this one is a little more drastic. 

Laura nods, "go on". 

"Start Poppy"

Poppy was an English international, at 18 years old, her pro career had consisted of a couple of appearances in some WSL matches as a substitute to see out games. Not able to break into the first team in England, she moved to the US with a hope to do it here. Tobin had taken Poppy under her wing when she arrived. It helped that they arrived to the club on the same day. She had a soft spot for the kid. Having grown up in a poor neighborhood in London, her parents couldn't afford to send her to play College football, despite having been offered scholarships. They'd barely afforded getting her to local practices and into new cleats, but always travelled with her to get her to where she needed to be to play. So she'd gone pro as soon as she could, hoping to repay her parents for their commitment to her playing career. 

"Tobin, I know you're close with her, but she's never played in a game for us. We haven't even brought her on as a sub yet, we can't start her", Laura argues. "We want her to settle first, we'll start to ease her in after this match, with time at the end of the game". 

"Trust me coach, she's ready. Look, the defensive line is good, its strong. Our midfield are workhorses, we've got it locked down, but we don't have the end product. Lindsey and I can play cross after cross into that box, but if no one gets on the end of it, they're wasted plays. She's the missing link, I know it", Tobin is almost pleading at this point. "Please trust me here. If it doesn't work out, you can bench me as well". 

"That's not going to help us, is it?" Alyse laughs. 

Laura stews, her eyebrows crossed in concentration. 

"Fine", Laura says, slightly exasperated. "I'll start her on Saturday. BUT, if this doesn't go well, it's on you, not me, not Poppy, it's on you. Okay?" 

"Yes coach! Of course coach! Thank you!" 

"You're telling her though. And you're telling her whose fault it's going to be if it doesn't work out" Laura says sternly. 

Tobin raises from her seat. "Thank you both, I'm going to go and find Poppy". 

Tobin finds her mom sat with Lindsey at the reception area of the training centre. They're sat close to one another on the sofa, coffee in hand, heads dipped. 

"Oh no, you're gossiping again, aren't you?" Tobin approaches. 

Cindy and Lindsey straighten up suddenly, caught in the act. 

"Never Toby, you'd never catch me gossiping"

"Me neither, how could you accuse me of such things, my darling daughter?"

The responses get a suspicious "uh-huh" from Tobin. 

"Horan, come with me, we've got some news for Poppy"

Lindsey stands up, placing her coffee cup back on the table. 

"Mom, you good here for a minute? This won't take long"

"Sure Tobes, I'll be here" responds Cindy, reaching into her purse for her kindle. 

Lindsey and Tobin start to head towards the locker room. 

"So what's the news for Poppy?"

"Laura agreed to start her on Saturday"

"Start? Like from the beginning of the game? But she's not even played in the league yet?" 

"Yeah I know"

"You think she's ready?" 

"I know she is. You've seen it, she's got the obsession. Just like you, just like me."

"Yeah but she's so young Toby, what if she freezes? What if the pressure gets to her?" 

"I seem to remember meeting an 18 year old in France who handled the pressure perfectly fine" 

Lindsey groans. "I guess", she concedes. She gets it, Poppy is a fantastic soccer player. She does have the obsession. She stays late most days with Lindsey and Tobin, the three of them just enjoying mini games, lining up shot after shot, practising plays and crosses. 

Tobin laughs as they enter the locker room. 

"Yo! Diggs!" Tobin shouts above the noise. 

Poppy turns around sharply, midway through braiding her hair.

"Come with us, we need to talk to you". Tobin closes the door and walks out to the pitch with Lindsey. 

30 seconds later, Poppy joins them, braids finished and fully dressed. 

"What's up guys?" Poppy asks. 

"Guess what?" Lindsey jumps in. Both her and Tobin are staring at Poppy with wide smiles on their faces. 

"Umm, did you two get high or something?"

"Nope"

"Win the lottery?"

"Nope"

"Get laid??"

"You're starting the game on Saturday as the 9 and I'm gonna whip so many crosses in and you're going to finish all of them and score a hat trick on your debut!" Lindsey blurts out, talking at warp speed. 

"What the hell, Horan? I was going to say it", Tobin punches Lindsey in the arm. 

"Are you serious?!" exclaims Poppy. "But I haven't even played in the league yet"

"Yes you have, you've played 11 v 11 in training plenty of times with us all. We all play in the league, so in my mind, that qualifies you've played in the league". Tobin says, hoping to give Poppy a shot of confidence. 

"Wait, are you pulling my leg? Why are you telling me and not Laura?" Poppy asks sceptically. 

"Well.." Tobin starts, rubbing the back of her neck, "I kinda requested it and I might have told Laura that I'll take responsibility for the decision". 

"What do you mean, responsibility?"

"I told her to trust me that you're ready. I said it would be on me if you're not"

"Tobin, you can't do that. What if I play badly? What if I lose the game for us? No, look, I'll speak to Laura, we can take it back. I'll have another chance to play, okay?" Poppy looks at Tobin, wide eyed. 

Tobin takes a step towards her, grabbing the tops of her arms and squeezing, looking straight into her eyes. 

"That's not going to happen, okay? You're incredible, you're the best scorer on the team, and the best young talent I've seen since Lindsey. You got this, okay? You're ready."

Poppy nods but stays silent. 

"I want you both in an hour early tomorrow so we can do a bit of extra practice, okay?" They both nod in agreement. "Perfect, see you tomorrow both, I believe in you Poppy"

With that, she leaves Lindsey and Poppy on the field, Poppy jumping on Lindsey in celebration as Lindsey swings her round, both whooping. Tobin heads back into the reception area. 

"Hey mom, what say we go out somewhere for an early dinner? My treat?" 

"Yes, that sounds lovely, let's go"

They sit on the terrace of the Italian restaurant, making the most of the unusually sunny day. They spend their meal chatting about everything and anything. Despite having spent most of her life away from home, Tobin had a special bond with her mom. They always made time to chat to one another and even through the distance, Tobin grew up to be very similar to her mother. They both loved art and music, not really ones for watching television. They both loved the outdoors in any way they could have it, hiking, skiing, surfing, even walking around the local neighborhood. They both loved books, trading them endlessly. 

Tobin takes care of the check and they leave the restaurant, making the short journey home. 

Having missed training, Tobin completes a home workout circuit, hitting the treadmill and lifting weights. Her mom insists on a joint yoga session to cool down, which Tobin reluctantly accepts. 

She heads up for a shower before heading to bed. She turns the water as hot as she can cope with, before stepping into the steam filled shower. She washes her hair, then her body and stands under the stream of water, reflecting on her day. She was so happy for Poppy. She knew this would pay off for her. She had no concerns. 

She was settled here and she was happy. She'd had a rough couple of years. Her break up with Shirley started a chain of events. Shirley had refused to come back to the US with her, wanting to see out her dreams in France. But Tobin had an agreement to honor with the Thorns. After a great season with the Thorns, Tobin thought that was it, she'd made her life in Portland, she owned her apartment, her studio, she had life-long friends made. 

Then that fateful afternoon, Louisville smashed her dreams by choosing her at the last minute in their expansion draft. She'd been told she was unofficially protected, she wasn't even on the list of potential choices. Then, not 3 hours before the draft, she'd been told she would be chosen. She was furious, and devastated. Her immediate response was to reach out to the Thorns, surely they'd trade back for her? No, they said, Louisville wanted too much. She was crushed. She booked the first flight to her mom's, spending the whole night crying in her mother's arms. Her world was rocked, her future was all of a sudden completely uncertain. 

The following day, after a 10 mile run and a particularly aggressive fight with a punch bag, she made up her mind. She'd fix this. She called her agent with her plan and he laughed, loud. There was no way she could pull this off. Her next call was Laura, in her new job as Sky Blue Head Coach. 

3 weeks later, it happened, the bombshell trade of the year. Tobin to Sky Blue from Louisville, Louisville getting a couple of midfielders in return. But the second part of the deal was the real kicker, 2 first round picks, including the first draft pick to Portland and some added allocation money from Sky Blue brought Lindsey over too. 

The team were fantastic. She had great friends again. She had a home, albeit her mom's, but she had her space. 

She thought back to her afternoon, those green eyes still imprinted in her mind. Maybe, just maybe she could be even happier? 

She steps out of the shower, towel drying her hair and puts on her pajamas. She gets herself into bed, exhausted, ready for sleep to take her. 

*DING*

Her phone lights up the room. Curious as to who could be messaging her this late, she checks it, elated with her decision as she sees who the message is from.

@christenpress: Hey you, you up?


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I haven't really decided where this is based, so please don't pay too much attention to locations etc. 
> 
> Hope you enjoy, let me know if you want me to keep going with this and thank you for the lovely comments so far.

@christenpress: Hey you, you up?

Tobin blinks, making sure she's reading correctly. She takes a deep breath. "Be cool Tobin, you got this", she thinks to herself.

*DING*

@christenpress: You there Tobin? I'm waiting.

"Well this is unexpected", she mutters, wracking her brains for a good response.

@tobinheath: yeah, I'm here. I'm in brd. you ok?

Shit.

@tobinheath: *bed

She smacks her hand to her forehead. Real smooth Tobin.

Seconds later, another message arrives.

*DING*

@christenpress: I'm in bed too. Can't sleep. Too much going on in my mind..

@tobinheath: thinking about me in bed eh? ;)

Ugh, what are you thinking Tobin? Way too far.

*DING*

@christenpress: Thinking about you in my bed.

Tobin's stomach flips. Now that was unexpected.

*DING*

@christenpress: Do you want to be in my bed baby?

What is going on??

Wait. Better not miss the chance.

@tobinheath: yeah I do. what do you want me to do to you in your bed?

Her stomach grows tighter, the ache growing between her legs. This is not how she expected her evening to end.

*DING*

@christenpress: Anything and everything. You can do whatever you want to me. I want your hands and your mouth on me. I want you to make me yours. Take me.

Tobin can't help but moan, her arousal growing by the second. The throbbing pulse between her legs taking over her senses. She moves her hand to the waistband of her sleep shorts. She goes to work it under the band, but she can't. Again, she wills her hand to move, but it remains flat against her stomach.

She panics, "what the hell is going on here?" She looks down, her hand stuck fast to her stomach. She looks past her hand and between her legs and sees a mass of black curls, electric green eyes staring straight in to her own. Her heart is racing, the mixture of tense arousal and white hot fear ripping through her.

*DING*

Tobin's eyes spring open, the room is shrouded in darkness, the small light from her phone shining a beacon to her right. She groans, flooded with disappointed at the realisation of the last few minutes all being part of a dream.

She reaches over for her phone and sees a string of messages in the "Kids" group, created by herself, with Poppy and Lindsey the other two in the group.

Lindsey Horan: Tobin, Poppy doesn't believe we used to watch Vampire Diaries together, tell her I'm right and she's wrong

Poppy Diggs: Shut up Horan. I know you're lying. This is going to be like the time you told me Tobin's favorite song was the Ping Pong song by Enrique Iglesias

Lindsey Horan: As if you brought it for her on vinyl for her birthday hahahaha

Poppy Diggs: Why are you so mean to me? I'm young! You're supposed to look after me!

Poppy Diggs: Tobin would never treat me like this, would you Tobin?

Lindsey Horan: I think Grandma's gone to bed...

Tobin laughs, rolling her eyes at their ridiculous conversation.

Tobin Heath: grandma WAS in bed until you woke me up. yes to vampire diaries, no to enrique. night kids.

She flicks through her phone, opening Instagram just to double check her dream was definitely a dream. She opens her messages to see Christen not only hasn't replied to her message from this afternoon, but hasn't even read it. She can't help but feel disappointed.

A couple more messages appear.

Lindsey Horan: HA I TOLD YOU!

Poppy Diggs: Sorry Tobin!

She puts her phone back on the side, making sure to silence it and rolls over, hoping to slip back into her dream. She tries to bring back the feelings and the visions she had before she woke up, but can't bring it back to her mind. She switches strategy, trying to clear her mind, but she's still frustrated, her body taking longer than her mind to come back down. She tosses and turns for 20 minutes before giving up, switching on her bedside lamp and tucking in to her book.

The weekend comes around quickly, Tobin’s time fully consumed with team training, video sessions and extra hours training with Lindsey and Poppy to get them as in sync as possible for the match. They line up in the tunnel, Tobin at the front of the line of players, the captain’s armband firmly wrapped around her right arm. The rowdy, noisy crowd adding to Tobin’s already high adrenaline levels. She turns around to face the team.

“Right everyone, we’ve got this, okay? We know how to out play them. We need to press them, not too high, but let’s make sure we show them who’s in charge. Let’s come out of the blocks flying, the first 10 minutes need to be high tempo, they need to fear us.” Tobin shouts, pumping the team up. The referee nods to signal Tobin to start walking out on to the pitch.

They make their way out to the thunderous applause of the crowd. Tobin looks around and can’t help but beam at the reception of their supporters. There is no better feeling than this and no matter how many matches Tobin plays, in whichever team she’s part of, she will never grow tired of this moment.

They line up alongside the opposition and silence dawns as the anthem starts. Tobin drops to her knee, raising her fist in support of the Black Lives Matter campaign. She looks down the line of her team mates, all of them in the same stance, unified in their views. A wave of emotion comes over her in that moment, every time she has taken part in it, this moment of silence and clarity hits her.

The anthem finishes and the raucous applause resumes. The team forms in to a circle. Having said her piece already, Tobin merely throws her fist into the middle.

“I’d proud of you all, let’s win this. On three, team. One, two, three..”

“TEAM”, they all shout in unison.

They break away from the circle and Tobin grabs Poppy by the arm before she makes her way to her starting position.

“How you feeling, kid?” she asks Poppy.

“I’m good, I’m nervous, but I’m good” she responds, her voice shaky and her eyes wide.

Tobin slaps her back, “Just relax, ignore the crowd and play like the pro you are”

Poppy shoots her a smile and heads off to her starting position.

The first half is a slog, they come out well, but it’s physical and frustrating. The game is incredibly box-to-box but with no clear chances for either side. Tobin takes a couple of big hits from their right-back, one of which keeps her down for a couple of minutes as she waits for the initial pain in her shin to subside.

Lindsey runs over to her, patting her on the head, “You good?”

“Yeah, just a stud to the shin, I’ll wrap it at the break”

Lindsey holds her hands out to help Tobin up and as she’s pulling her up, adds “Maybe you should think about wearing your shin pads properly” with a wink and runs back to her position.

Tobin laughs, swiping the blood from her shin and getting back into the game.

The only main disadvantage to the first half, to Tobin’s disdain, is watching Poppy get completely frozen out of the action by the center back pairing marking her. The strategy of the opposition is to crowd Poppy at all times, not allowing her to receive the ball, let alone try and run with it. As the half wears on, Tobin sees Poppy becoming more and more frustrated and for the last 10 minutes of the half, she doesn’t touch the ball at all.

The referee blows the whistle signalling the end of the half and they make their way into the dressing room. Laura praises the team for their resilience and strength, but points out their lack of creativity in the final third. The first bell goes to warn the players to start making their way back on to the pitch. Tobin makes a beeline for Poppy, pulling her aside in the tunnel.

“I told you I wasn’t ready Tobin”, Poppy starts, tears forming in her eyes. “I’m not good enough, I can’t get near the ball”

“Right, drop that attitude now”, Tobin chides, “I’ve seen you in practice all week making runs through the defence, that’s what you need to do now. Their number 3 is slow, get between her and the right-back instead of trying to go through the center. You keep trying through the middle and they’ve got you covered.”

Poppy remains silent, her eyes cast downward.

“I promise you. Make the run and I’ll get you the ball.”

Still met with a wall of silence, Tobin changes her approach.

“Fine. Score and I’ll buy you dinner!.”

This raises a laugh from the young forward and she raises her eyes to meet Tobin’s.

“Come on kid, let’s go win this thing!” Tobin says, trying to gee her team mate up. She puts her hands either side of her head and pulls her in with a sloppy kiss to the forehead, “I believe in you”

“ugh” Poppy groans, wiping her forehead “you’re disgusting, Heath”

They turn to head out of the tunnel, running back on to the pitch side by side.

The first 5 minutes are much of the same, until Tobin receives the ball on the left wing. She makes her way past their midfielder, looking up to see where the rest of her team are. She meets the eye of Poppy, willing her to make the run between the right-back, currently facing up to Tobin, and the slower of the center back pair. She sees Poppy turn on the jets, making a diagonal run between the two. Tobin loops the ball over, landing perfectly at the feet of Poppy, who is now on a breakaway run, heading to a one-on-one situation with the keeper. She enters the box, and the keeper drops low, reducing the angle to the goal. Poppy lifts her head, leans back slightly and shoots.

The ball curls around the keeper and Tobin holds her breath. Then clatters the post with an almighty thud, bobbling away out of bounds for a goal kick. She runs straight to Poppy.

“That was perfect, you’ve done it once, now do it again, okay?” she taps her on the backside and runs back to her position, Poppy nodding at her in response.

They try to link up a couple more times as the minutes tick by, but they can’t seem to connect. As they enter the 86th minute, Tobin receives the ball again out on the wing, but the only team mate in space is Lindsey on the opposite wing. Frustrated, Tobin lobs the ball over to her and moves forward, towards the box, as Lindsey makes her way up the wing. She spots Poppy heading towards the center of the box, but a few yards behind her at this point. Lindsey whips a cross in, straight towards Tobin. She looks towards goal, the angle is too tight and the keeper has it covered. In a split second decision, Tobin reaches the end of the cross, diverting it in the opposite direction of the goal, towards the edge of the box, where Poppy is steaming in to. Poppy volleys the ball, directly from Tobin’s header and smashes it towards the goal.

Everything stops in that second, the only sound Tobin hears is the ripple of the net as the ball finds the back of it. The stadium explodes in to a deafening roar. Tobin turns to look at Poppy, whose eyes are wide in complete shock, her mouth open in an ‘oh’ shape, her feet fixed in position. Tobin runs over to her, putting her arms around her. Lindsey joins them, wrapping her arms around both of them and then they are mobbed by the rest of the team.

“We fucking told you!” Lindsey shouts at Poppy, patting her on the head. “That was awesome!”

Poppy laughs, finally taking in the moment, pumping her fist and shouting “yessss!” As they break apart, heading back towards their side, Poppy looks over at Laura who puts both of her thumbs up in silent thanks and celebration.

They see out the next few minutes, Tobin falling to her knees as soon as the final whistle blows. Poppy strolls over, a smile plastered to her face, and grabs her hand, pulling her up to her feet. She wraps Tobin up in a hug.

“Thank you Tobin, thank you so much” she whispers, tightening her grip around her.

“This was all you, kid”, Tobin replies, “I didn’t do anything”

Poppy shrugs in her arms, moves away from Tobin and turns to see Lindsey heading towards them.

“This definitely calls for a celebration. Tobin – I heard you were paying for dinner because Poppy scored, right?” Lindsey chirps up.

“No, I said I would buy Poppy dinner, not you”, Tobin rebuffs.

“Sorry Toby, we’re a package deal”, Lindsey responds, wrapping her arm around Poppy.

Tobin rolls her eyes and starts heading towards the waiting fans at the sideline.

“You did this!” Lindsey shouts after her, “if you hadn’t have made that trade happen, we wouldn’t know each other!”

Tobin raises her hand in surrender, “Fine.. Let’s go and see the fans, get cleaned up and I’ll meet you at Portobello’s for dinner at 7. Deal?”

“Deal” both Lindsey and Poppy respond in unison.

Tobin leaves the locker room, hoisting her bag over her shoulder as she heads to the car park.

"Heath!"

She turns around to see Laura jogging after her.

"Sup coach?" Tobin asks

Laura holds out her hand, "just wanted to say the risk was worth it"

Tobin slaps her hand into her coach's, "hey, it's on you coach, thanks for trusting me."

"See you Monday, Tobin, enjoy the rest of your weekend"

"You too", Tobin responds as Laura heads back to her office. She makes her way out into the car park as the first drops of rain fall from the grey, gloomy clouds. She runs to her car, flinging her bag in the back and jumping into the drivers seat.

Just as she turns out of the stadium, the sky lights up in a flash, soon followed by a rumble of thunder as the rain starts to tumble down. Tobin switches her wipers to full, driving down the streets slowly, barely able to see through the windscreen.

She approaches a crossing, the lights in front of her on red, holding her in place. She looks to her right. "surely not?" She mutters. Running down the sidewalk, she sees a mass of black, curly hair, tied back in a bun and an ass shes been dreaming about for days.

She shakes her head, there's no way it's her. The light changes to green and she heads across the crossing, slowly approaching the runner. As she passes her, she looks in her mirror. It IS her! She pulls the car over and jumps out of her door.

"Christen!" She shouts. Christen looks up, a flash of recognition in her face. She's drenched, the rain pouring off her.

"Quick, get in!" Tobin shouts and jumps back in the car, already feeling the rain seeping through her hoodie, even from those few seconds in the rain.

Christen opens the passenger door, but doesn't get in to the car, "don't worry Tobin, I don't live far"

"Please, let me give you a lift", Tobin insists, "you're going to get soaked"

Christen laughs a little "I think I'm already soaked.. I'll be fine, thanks for the offer though".

Tobin smirks, "Christen. Please don't make me get out and manhandle you into my car"

Christen raises her eyebrows in response.

Tobin flexes her arms, "trust me, I will! And I won't be happy about it"

Christen flops in to the passenger seat, pulling the door shut. She feels her sneakers squelching on the floor and shudders in response to the feeling.

Tobin chuckles, reaching behind her for her bag. She pulls out a towel and hands it to Christen.

"Here you go. And for some warmth.." she leans forward and adjusts the air conditioning to pump warm air in Christens direction.

"Thank you", Christen says quietly, dabbing her hair with the towel and meeting Tobin's eyes in a sideways glance.

The butterflies return to Tobin's stomach, the same as she'd had in Christens office the other day.

She clears her throat, "So, um, where to?"

"Would you mind taking me home?"

Tobin chokes on air, 'she doesn't mean like that' she chides herself internally.

"Yeah of course, which way?"

Christen starts to navigate Tobin to her apartment.

"So, why on earth did you decide to go for a run in this storm?" Tobin asks, smiling and shaking her head.

Christen laughs, "well I didn't think it was going to be this bad!"

"Did you even look at the sky before you left?" Tobin asks, incredulous.

Christen leans over, slapping her on the top of her arm, "yes thank you smartass!" She laughs, "it didn't look that bad in my defense. Anyway, where are you headed?"

"Just on the way back from the stadium, we had a game this afternoon"

"Oh cool, how did it go?"

Tobin tells her about the match, adding in the story about Poppy and how she'd scored on her debut, the pride evident in her voice. Christen nodded along, smiling away as Tobin spoke. When she wrapped up the story, Christen still had her toothy grin on show.

"What?" Tobin asks.

"Nothing, you're just so passionate. It's cute"

"Are you calling me cute, Ms Press?"

Christen flashes red, "not like that"

"I'm only messing with you Christen"

They pull up outside Christen's apartment block. Tobin turns her car off and turns to face Christen.

"Thanks for being my knight in shining armour" Christen says, looking over at Tobin.

"Anytime", Tobin smiles back, "my pleasure. Plus, now I know where you live, so if my case goes wrong, I can come knocking"

They both laugh, then fall silent. The air between them a little awkward.

"Hey, um.." Tobin starts, quietly, "do you fancy, like, getting a coffee or something? I've got some time.."

Christen looks towards her feet, "I shouldn't Tobin, it's not professional". Her voice is thin.

Tobin realizes, she must feel this too, right? This can't just be in Tobin's head. She can literally feel the electricity between them, let alone something in the back of her head telling her not to let this slip by.

She gathers her confidence and tries again, "it's just a coffee, between friends.. or not even friends, between criminal and attorney!"

That gets a laugh from the raven haired beauty. She looks up again, "okay. But it's in official attorney capacity" Tobin nods, "can you wait here for 5 minutes while I go and put some dry clothes on?"

"Of course" Tobin replies. Christen reaches for the door handle, bending over as she leaves the car, Tobin getting another view of that fantastic ass. Her skin heats up as Christen makes her way into the apartment block.

"Phew", she exhales deeply.

With the rain now having made way to patchy sunshine, Tobin gets out of her car, leaning up against it while she waits for Christen. She takes her phone out of her pocket and scrolls through the official photos from today's game. She selects a picture of her, Poppy and Lindsey from the goal celebration and makes a new post. Uncharacteristically, she posts the caption "proud" alongside the picture. No sooner has she posted, she starts to see the likes pouring in. She locks her phone and drops it back in her pocket.

"Hey"

She looks up to see a less soaked Christen, now wearing a grey cropped top and a flowing maroon patterned skirt, finished off with a pair of sandals.

Tobin looks down at herself, in joggers and a hoody, a pair of sneakers on her sockless feet.

"I feel pretty underdressed right now", she smirks

"You're fine", Christen replies, "there's a place just down the street if that's okay with you?"

"Lead the way" Tobin says, putting her arm out in the direction of the coffee shop to indicate Christen should go first.

They walk down the street, barely a hairs width between them. Tobin's hand brushes against Christen's and they both jolt their heads up and meet eyes. "sorry" Tobin says quickly, Christen smiling back at her.

They reach the coffee shop and Tobin opens the door, holding it open for Christen to enter.

"What can I get you?" The barista asks them.

Tobin turns to Christen, "what are you having?"

"No please, this is my treat, you saved my butt out there" Christen replies.

"Absolutely not, my treat" Tobin insists.

The barista clears her throat.

"Sorry, I'll have a cappuccino" Christen orders and turns to Tobin.

"Just an Americano please" she adds to the order. Tobin goes to hand her card over to the barista, but just before she gets there, Christen hands over a $20 note.

Tobin lets her mouth fall open, feigning shock.

"That was supposed to be my treat!"

"Yeah, well, you can get the next one" Christen fires back.

They get their drinks and go to sit in a table in the corner of the cafe.

"So, Christen, tell me about yourself"

"What do you want to know?" Christen asks

"Anything.. everything" Tobin replies, "where are you from? Why did you become a lawyer? What's your favorite sandwich filling?"

Christen laughs, "I'm from California, most of my family are still back there, but I got offered a job out here I couldn't turn down. My favorite sandwich filling is BLT. And what was the third question?"

"Why did you become a lawyer?"

"Sorry, yes. I always wanted to help people. I thought about medicine originally, but then my sister cut her foot open on a rock at the beach when I was 13. She had this deep cut right on the sole of her foot and it bled everywhere. While my dad was trying to stem the bleeding and carry her back out, I ended up passing out from all of the blood. That was the day I knew I probably wouldn't make it in that profession", she laughs. "So, then I considered counselling, but I'm naturally a very empathetic person, so I just couldn't help but think I'd bring it home with me too much. The same thinking discounted social worker from my list of career choices."

She stops to take a sip of her drink, Tobin just looking at her with a dopey smile on her face.

"What?" She asks, "sorry, am I talking to much?" Concerned she's boring her companion.

"Absolutely not" Tobin says sincerely, "I love listening to you talk"

Christen blushes but carries on.

"One day, I was reading a story about a lawyer working on a case for a young woman who was in prison on a life sentence. This woman, she was 23. She met her husband when she was 16 and he was 28. He was an engineer and she lived with her alcoholic mother at the time. When he offered to move her in to his apartment, she'd taken him up on it straight away. That's when the violence started." She pauses, "she felt like she deserved it. After all, he was looking after her. She thought it was normal to be disciplined for not cleaning or cooking or ironing. This went on for 6 years. Every day he would hit her, burn her, cut her, rape her even.." tears start to well in her eyes. Tobin reaches out over the table and puts her hand over the top of Christens.

"Ugh, I don't know why I'm getting emotional, I didn't even know her!" She laughs out.

Tobin squeezes her hand, "you did say you were empathetic!"

Christen chuckles, "anyway, one day, she found out she was pregnant and her husband was furious. He didn't want children and he made her know it. He punched her, over and over, forcing her to lose the baby. While she was miscarrying, I guess something just triggered in her. She waited until he was asleep, took his own pistol and shot him."

"Jeez", Tobin interjects, "that's awful".

"Yeah, it really was. She got arrested for murder and her crappy, state funded lawyer forced her to take a plea deal. One of her close friends spoke to a local newspaper about the story, telling them the story about what she'd endured while he'd basically kept her locked up. A local lawyer saw the story and decided to step in. Without going into too much legal mumbo jumbo, her previous lawyer was proven incompetent. She went to trial with her new lawyer and he got her off all charges. Anyway, that was the day I knew that's what I wanted to do."

Tobin withdraws her hand but remains smiling at Christen, "that's awesome"

"Yeah, it just lit a fire in me. So I got my degree and started at a law firm in California. Without sounding too big headed, I was great at my job there. I had some pretty big wins and started to gain a reputation. But to be honest, I hated it. I was defending corporations against financial crimes. It just felt like I'd taken my dream of helping people and spent my time doing basically the opposite. I started to get approached by a few different big name firms. Then Davidson & Reed got in touch. They offered me a position in their financial division. I initially rejected them, but one of the Partners asked me for a chat. I explained to him that I wanted to help people and told him the story I've just told you. He offered me my current job on the spot. So I get to take any case I want, that was my first criteria. In return, I have to spend at least 20% of my time on paid cases and have to consult on financial cases for the firm. The money isn't quite as good, but that's not what I'm in it for. And that's how I ended up here.."

Tobin can't help but beam at her, "that's incredible! Honestly, that's so cool Christen."

"You think so?" Christen smirks.

Tobin just nods. She looks down at the table, their empty cups pushed in to the middle. She looks back up at Christen, "my round?" She asks.

"Yes please" Christen replies, "that'd be lovely"

They chat for next couple of hours, time slipping by unnoticed. The conversation flows so naturally, both of them feeling completely comfortable in one another's presence. Tobin feels herself slipping dangerously from crush in to the firm 'Like' category.

Tobin feels her stomach rumble, a sudden alarming feeling washes through her. She grabs her phone out of her pocket and reads the time - 18.47.

"Shit shit shit!"

"What Tobin, what's wrong?"

"I'm so sorry Christen, I'm supposed to be meeting friends for dinner at 7"

"Where are you going?"

"Portobello's"

"That's 20 minutes away Tobin!" Horror on Christen's face.

Tobin laughs, "I know that! That's why I'm panicking!"

Christen joins in laughing, she stands up, grabbing Tobin's hand to help her up. "come on, let's go and get you to your dinner".

They leave the coffee shop and walk up the street together, stopping at Tobin's car.

"Um, thanks for coming for coffee" Tobin says awkwardly, her hand rubbing the back of her neck, "I guess I'll see you for our appointment next week?"

"Yes you will", Christen confirms.

The awkwardness sets in, neither knowing how to say goodbye to the other.

Tobin decides to go brave, feeling good with the success of her decision making today. She holds her arms out wide, "bye Christen" she says stepping towards her.

Christen closes the gap between them, wrapping her arms around Tobin's shoulders which Tobin's arms wrap around her waist in return. Tobin is surrounded by the smell of Christen, which she logs in her mind - vanilla and jasmine. She hopes Christen can't feel her heart trying to beat out of her chest.

As they part, Christen runs her hands down Tobin's arms. "bye Tobin", she smiles a full toothy smile, turns towards her apartment building and heads inside.

Tobin turns her head to the sky and takes a deep breath. Her phone vibrates in her pocket.

Incoming call: Lindsey Horan.

"Fuck!" She curses and jumps into her car.


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for the comments and support, it's such a nice boost. 
> 
> I've got an idea of where this is going. Would be good to know if you prefer shorter, more frequent updates, or whether you'd rather a longer gap but with longer chapters? Let me know.

Tobin keeps herself busy over the coming days, throwing herself into her training, knowing last week’s victory could have easily gone the other way. She stays behind each day to meet with Laura and run through game plans and formations. Her gratitude knows no bounds for the team that saved her. She knew she had clout as a veteran player, but they still took a chance on her and brought in the players she wanted. In return, Tobin vows to put the work in as captain and help push the team to victory. 

A couple of nights after their impromptu meeting, laying alone in bed, Tobin decides to take a chance with Christen again. 

@tobinheath: thanks for the coffee meet, was good to see you. your round again now though, when can I collect? 

Much to her dismay, she is met with a wall of silence. Again. She stays late after practice the following night, slings a ball bag over her shoulder and heads for the corner flag, practicing her deliveries over and over. Her mind wanders as she does so, “I can’t get a handle on this woman. One day, my feelings feel reciprocated, the next, I feel like she doesn’t want anything to do with me”. She hits another corner then turns around to grab another ball. She double takes as she sees the ball she just hit come rolling past her. She turns round to try and make sense of where it’s come from and it met by Poppy, only a few feet from her. 

“Jeez kid, you scared the crap outta me! Announce yourself!” Tobin chuckles out, “why are you still here anyway?”

“Uh, I just had a session with the physio on my calf, heard someone out here, so thought I’d come and see who it was. Why are you still here?”

“Corners”, Tobin points down to the ball bag at her feet. 

“Ha, I can see that. Training finished 2 hours ago, don’t you want to get home?”

“Yeah, I suppose I should really. You should, too. Isn’t Lindsey waiting for you?”

“No, she’s out tonight. Hot date”, Poppy shrugs. 

Tobin raises her eyebrows, “oh really?”

“Nah, some company rep trying to schmooze her apparently. I’ll probably just get takeout and have an early night”

Tobin grins at her, knowing where this is going. Living with Lindsey was a great decision for Poppy, learning from someone who also lived abroad from home at 18. But the kid still can’t cook at all. 

“Poppy, would you like to come for dinner?”

Poppy glances at her, then to the ground, “no, it’s okay.. I don’t want to impose”

“Yes you do!” Tobin shoots back at her, a wide grin on her face. “But you have to earn it, go collect those balls for me while I get changed, meet you out front in 5”

Poppy sprints off to collect the balls scattered around the goal as Tobin makes her way in to the changing room. 

Thirty minutes later, they step through the front door of Tobin’s moms house. 

“Hey ma”, Tobin goes over to give her mum a quick hug, “I brought Poppy with me. She needs feeding, that ok?” 

Poppy stands by the door timidly, toeing her shoes off. This wasn’t the first time this had happened, or the second or third for that matter. Cindy was fairly used to it and had developed a good relationship with Poppy, almost a motherly figure to her as she was so far from home.

“Of course”, Cindy responds, “come on Poppy, you can help me get it ready, maybe learn a thing or two.” 

Poppy groans, “I hate cooking, you know this!”

“Gotta sing for your supper, kid”, Tobin calls from the staircase, heading up to her room to get changed and sort her training gear. 

A couple of hours later, now full of food, Tobin stands from the sofa, “Come on Poppy, I’ll take you home”. 

“You sure? I can Uber if you want”

“Don’t be silly, come on”, she heads to the door. Her protective nature over Poppy means she’d never make her travel with a stranger unless she needed to. They make their way through the quiet streets in comfortable silence. Tobin drops Poppy off at home with a quick goodbye and starts to drive home, mostly on autopilot. Before she can realize what she’s doing, she’s passing the coffee shop where her and Christen met a few days ago, then further up the street to Christen’s apartment building. 

“What the hell am I doing?” she thinks, suddenly fully aware of where she is. She looks forward and speeds away, trying to get a grasp on her feelings. 

“Pull yourself together, Tobin” she mutters under her breath. 

Tobin stands outside of the Davidson & Reed office. Her heart pounding, her backpack heavy against her shoulders. She makes her way in to the building, over to the main reception desk. She comes face to face with the same blonde from last week, this time, her demeanour the opposite she faced last time. 

“Hey, Tobin, right?” the blonde smiles at her. 

“Err, yeah. I’m here for Christen Press again”

The receptionist nods, “Sure, I’ll get you there in just a minute.”

Tobin looks around, anxious to get going, while the receptionist scrawls something on to a piece of paper. She slides it over to Tobin. 

“My number”, she says in a sultry tone, “I added you on Instagram too, you should follow me back”

Tobin shakes her head, incredulous at the change in tone from this woman who was clearly more concerned with Instagram followers than anything else. She looks at the note, Heidi has written her name, her number and her Instagram handle. 

Tobin scoffs, trying not to burst out laughing. “Can I go now?” she asks, desperate to get out of whatever this is. 

Heidi nods at her and winks, “see you soon, yeah?” 

Tobin walks through the security gates to the elevator, presses the call button, then dumps the note in the trash can between the elevators. She makes her way up to the third floor, past Marjorie and to Christen’s office. 

“Hey Vince, how you doing?” she asks, “can I go in?” she points at Christen’s closed office door.

“Hey Tobin, good to see you again”, Vince replies, “she’s just finishing up her notes from her last appointment. Can I get you a coffee or anything?” 

“No thank you, I won’t be here long”

Vince looks at her puzzled, “Oh, do you need to reschedule? I have you in for a 90 minute appointment?” 

“Nope”, Tobin replies, popping the ‘p’, “I’ll still need the 90 minutes”

Vince chuckles, “okay… good win last week by the way”

“You saw that?” Tobin asks, surprised by the comment. Vince didn’t strike her much as a Soccer fan.

“Unfortunately… no offense intended. My husband is a huge soccer fan. I’m not so much, but I get to endure it on my television every Saturday afternoon”

Tobin laughs, tickled by his honesty, “sorry man, maybe one day you’ll see the beauty in the game. Hey, you can see my email address in there, right?” she nods to his computer. 

“Yes, why do you ask?”

“Send me an email with your details and I’ll sort you tickets to our next home game”

“No, I can’t ask you to do that”

“It would be my pleasure”, Tobin replies. In all honesty, it wouldn’t take her much effort, she has a family and friends box held most weekends, and even with her mom, sisters and their kids, there’s always a few free seats left.

Vince smiles, genuinely taken aback by Tobin’s kindness. “Thank you Tobin, you’re going to make my husband a very happy man!” 

“Anytime dude”.

Vince’s phone rings, “Hello?.... Yes, she’s here…. Yes, will do”. He turns back to Tobin, “head in when you’re ready”

Tobin takes a deep breath and opens the door, the nerves starting to get to her again, concerned that her plan won’t be well received. She heads in to the office and closes the door behind her. Christen turns to look at her and she’s blown away again. She’s more casually dressed than last time she was in this office, in a colorful maxi dress, hair down in wild curls around her face. 

“Hey”, Christen greets her, “come sit down”, she motions to the chair in front of her desk. 

“No”, Tobin replies, still in a stunned state. 

“Um, okay, would you rather stand…?” Christen asks, confusion evident on her face. 

“No”, Tobin says again. 

“Right. Are you okay Tobin..?” 

Tobin shakes her head, “Sorry, yes, I am. You just look… wow… you look really nice today Christen, I like relaxed you” 

Christen chuckles, “Thank you Tobin, no court today you see. You don’t look so bad yourself”

Tobin grins, happy with her outfit choice. She’d decided to ditch the hoodie and tracksuit bottoms for the day and swap it for a white t-shirt, skinny black ripped jeans and her best Jordan’s on her feet. 

“Anyway”, Christen continues, “Are you going to sit down now? Because the only other position I can offer you is laying on the sofa, but I’m actually a lawyer, not a counsellor”

Tobin laughs, “Good one”, she unhooks her backpack from her shoulders, “I can’t sit down because we’re leaving” 

Christen looks at her puzzled, “what do you mean?”

“Well I booked this appointment at lunchtime, because last time I was here, I noticed that lovely little park you overlook from here. So in this here bag, is a picnic for us, complete with a blanket. I figured you would need to eat and to be honest”, she gestures round the room with her hand, “I’m not really an office person, I work better outdoors” 

Christen looks over at her, narrowing her eyes, “Tobin, I’m still your lawyer…”

“I know! I thought you’d say that” Tobin replies, “that’s why this is a business lunch. We need to discuss the case, that’s the purpose of us meeting, but there’s nothing to stop us doing it over food.”

Christen sighs in response, powerless to the situation, but not wanting Tobin to know that just yet.

Tobin starts again, “don’t make me waste this picnic. There’s starving people in the world, don’t you know?”

Christen grabs her jacket from the coat rack next to her desk, “fine”, she concedes, “let’s go”. She makes her way out of the office, over to Vince’s desk. “I’ll be back shortly, feel free to take your lunch”, she says to him as she passes. 

Tobin follows behind, giving Vince a cheeky grin and a thumbs up, “see ya soon Vince!”

They make their way in to the elevator, Tobin still giddy with nerves, but happy her plan had worked. The elevator doors close, leaving the two of them truly alone. Tobin reaches for Christen’s forearm, “it really is good to see you again”, she breathes out. 

Christen remains looking at the doors ahead, a smirk appearing on her face, “you too, Tobin. Don’t push it though”

They arrive at the ground floor, Christen making her way across reception, with Tobin just behind her, a dopey smile plastered across her face. They make their way out of the building and cross the road in to the park. 

“Any preference on where you want to sit?” Tobin asks, “I’ve never been here before, so you lead the way”

Christen guides them through the entrance to the park, veering off the main path after a couple hundred yards. They walk through a small copse of tree’s, to a large open green space, a bandstand occupying the center of the space, a play park and small café on the other side of the bandstand. The copse and the café creating a barrier to the busy streets around them, a slice of quiet in the bustle of the city. 

“just here I think”

Tobin nods, removes her backpack and pulls out a picnic blanket from the top of the pack, laying it across the ground. She sits down on it cross legged, and motions to the space next to her, “m’lady”, she says, her best British accent impression coming out. 

Christen sits down, maintaining as much distance as she can from Tobin. Tobin starts to unpack her bag. 

“I didn’t know what you’d like, so I brought us a selection. There’s some veg sticks and hummus, a couple of different flavors of chips, some fresh fruit and..”, she roots around in the bag, pulling out a wrapped sub style sandwich, “a BLT sandwich”. 

“You remembered?” Christen asks, remembering their last conversation. 

“Yeah I did”, Tobin blushes slightly, rubbing the back of her neck awkwardly. 

“That’s very sweet Tobin. Thank you so much for this, it’s a lovely surprise”, she takes the sandwich from Tobin and starts to unwrap it. “We really do need to talk about your case while we’re here though”, Christen warns. 

Tobin holds her hands up, “I know, I know. So, hit me, how bad is it?” 

They eat as they discuss the case, “I had a discussion this week with the prosecutors. I mentioned the need for privacy, given the position you hold in the community. Originally, they wanted to make an example of you, show to the city that no-one can break the law and not be held accountable. I gave them the explanation of the artwork that you gave to me and I think that helped them to change their minds. That doesn’t mean to say it won’t go without punishment unfortunately.” 

Tobin nods along while Christen explains. “You’ll be charged with an Infraction offence. We’ve negotiated that you will pay a fine to the courts, but also that you will pay either to get the bridge repainted or the equivalent value as a fine to be used for that purpose, so it’s up to you to decide on that one. They also expect a level of community outreach. I don’t think it would be best for you to be litter picking on the side of the highway, especially if we are trying to keep this under wraps.”

“So what do you suggest?” Tobin jumps in. 

Christen shrugs, “that’s really up to you to decide. There are a number of volunteer services you can sign up to, or you can come up with an idea yourself that we can position with them. We just need the terms of it decided before we can agree to this deal with them.” 

Tobin thinks a moment, “Back when I was a kid playing soccer here, there used to be a program tied with some of the local youth centers. They used to bring a bus load of kids to our training facilities once a week. Some were orphans, some from disadvantaged families where they either couldn’t get to a training center or where kids needed childcare when their parents worked. Could I get involved in something like that? Would that fulfil the need?” 

Christen nods, “I don’t see why not, you’d just need to map out what that looks like. The community service sentence they wanted to originally impose was 100 hours, so it needs to total that or they won’t agree to it.” 

“When do they need it by?” 

“Ideally next week, I want to get this completed as soon as possible. They’ve agreed to complete silence, they won’t publish your name in any reports and any involved officers and officials have agreed to an NDA, so they cannot mention this to anyone. The quicker we can get the paperwork locked down, the less risk there is to this coming out.” 

“Okay, I’ll work on it as soon as possible. I just want to speak to the club to make sure they’re happy for me to dedicate the time”

“They have to be Tobin”, Christen responds, a serious edge to her tone, “just be aware that they’ve offered you a great deal here. They can just as quickly change their minds and put you on that highway verge”

Tobin nods, “I get it, I’ll head there today and talk it through with them. Any other good news for me?” 

Christen chuckles, “You did this! I’m just trying to get you out of it”

“I know, and seriously, thank you”

“But no, that’s it for now. As long as you get your plan done for the community hours, this should be done and dusted by this time next week.”

They work their way through the picnic, mostly in silence, Tobin listening to her mother’s voice in her head, telling her not to speak with her mouth full. 

After a few minutes, Christen breaks the silence, “anyway, last time we saw each other, I spoke for hours about myself, so why don’t you tell me a bit about you?”

“What do you want to know?” Tobin replies, enjoying the change of mood to casual. 

“Well, I know you play soccer, how do you even get in to that?” 

“I fell in love with it as a child. There’s something beautiful about soccer. You don’t need anything other than a ball to play. It just kind of became my life, wherever I went, a ball came with me. My mom used to go mad at me, for playing in the house with my little brother, breaking too many vases to count. Bringing the ball to the supermarket or insisting that I bring it on holiday with me. Honestly, I think she was just more annoyed that I didn’t follow in her footsteps with Tennis.” She chuckles as the memories coming flooding through. 

Christen nods along, not wanting to interrupt. 

“I played through school, then my mom found me a local youth team to join. I had an awesome coach there who helped me get into the youth Olympic programs and I started to travel for camps and tournaments and getting into the Youth National teams. That’s when I guess it got cemented, I started getting scouted by colleges long before I was old enough to go. I was offered a full scholarship to pretty much all of the top schools and ended up at UNC which is the best soccer program in the country. During my time there, we won 3 out of the 4 years we competed for the National Championship and I won my first Olympic gold” She takes a break for a drink. 

“Wow, big shot over here” Christen teases, “Am I worthy of sitting in your presence?”

“Very funny” Tobin shoots back sarcastically, “I can stop if you want?” 

“No please”, Christen scoots slightly closer, allowing her to reach out and touch Tobin’s arm, “I was just teasing, please carry on”

Tobin gathers herself after the electric shock of Christen’s touch and continues, “I got drafted first in the WPS as it was then, but didn’t really play for a while. It was the first time I’d really been hit by injury, honestly, that sucked so bad. Then that summer, the league folded in the US. So I had to decide whether to give up my dream of full time professional soccer and get a real job, or find somewhere else to play. So obviously, I moved to France to continue playing.”

“Ooh. Est-ce que tu parles français?”

Tobin looks at her, puzzled, “I have no idea what you just said”

“You just answered my question, I asked if you spoke French”, Christen giggles and Tobin’s stomach flips. Damn, she’d bottle that sound if she could. 

“I do not speak French at all. I learnt enough to get by on the soccer pitch, but that was it really. When I arrived, I attached myself to a team mate, Lindsey, as she was the only other English speaker on the team, but she was so shy. She was just a youngster, went pro from school, moved over to France when she was 18, bless her. Far cry from the loud mouth she is now.”

“You still speak with her then?”

“Oh yeah, she’s on my team now. Whilst I was in France, they formed the NWSL and as a US International, I got to nominate some teams to be part of. I chose Jersey because of my family and Portland because it has such a huge soccer following. I got sent to Portland, so I moved back from France to join the Thorns. In an awesome twist of fate, Lindsey’s rights got traded to the Thorns too when she decided to come back stateside, so we played together there for a few years.”

“So how did you end up back here?”

“Louisville joined the league and every new team gets to take part in an expansion draft. I got..”

Christen interrupts, “sorry, what is an expansion draft?”

“Sorry, I forget other people aren’t soccer heads. They get to select 2 players from each team to make their own roster. Each team gets to protect 11 players, but only 2 internationals. There were so many internationals on the Thorns that they chose not to protect me. I found out 3 hours before the draft that Louisville were going to select me.”

“Oh my goodness, that’s awful… and there’s nothing you can do about it?”

“Nope”, Tobin looks down, trying to keep her emotions in check, “one minute I’m thinking I’ll retire in Portland, the next, I’m being shipped across the country to play for an awful coach. My only other option was to look abroad. When I found out, I flew home to my mom’s and that’s when it kinda clicked, I would force a move here. So I went to see my now head coach Laura, and got the wheels in motion. Part of my conditions were to get Lindsey here too. We’re a bit of a rebuild team, so I wanted a solid foundation. A few people were pretty pissed off, especially those players that got traded to Louisville, but I just couldn’t pass it up.” 

“Hey”, Christen shrugs, “you’ve worked damn hard to get to where you are by the sounds of it, you deserve it.”

“Thank you”, Tobin smiles at her, “and that’s what got me to where I am today”. Tobin leads across the blanket, laying down on her side, propping herself up on her elbow. “sorry, I needed to stretch out a bit”

Christen grabs the box of fruit, the last food remaining from the picnic, places it in front of Tobin, then mirrors her position, only a foot or so apart now. 

They continue chatting back and forth. Tobin telling Christen about how she was living with her mom temporarily and how great it had been to reconnect with her family. Christen tells Tobin about her family, her larger-than-life father, her meddling sisters and her wonderful, late mother. They make their way through the fruit, until all that’s left in the pot is one, lone strawberry. Tobin picks it up before she realizes it’s the last piece. 

“That’s not fair”, Christen whines, “gimme gimme!” She makes grabbing motions at the fruit in Tobin’s hand. 

“No way, Jose”, Tobin replies, “I’m an athlete, I need the sustenance”. 

“Nice try”, Christen deadpans, “I need it for brain food. You can go get a protein bar or something”

Tobin laughs, “is that what you think athletes eat?! Those things are for TV commercials and gym goers”. 

“Tobin…”, Christen drops her head and looks up at Tobin through her eyelashes, “give me the strawberry” she says in a sultry tone. 

Tobin’s stomach flips, “and what do I get out of it?” 

“You get to make me happy”

“I made you a picnic, what more do you want?” 

“The strawberry, that’s what I want” 

Enjoying the back and forth, Tobin takes a risk. “Fine”, she says, “we’ll have half each” 

“How’s that going to work? We don’t have a knife” Christen questions. 

“You’ll have to bite it”, Tobin answers.

“Okay”, Christen replies and before Tobin can do anything, Christen grabs her wrist and pulls it towards her. Christen takes a bite of the strawberry in Tobin’s hand, still not releasing her wrist. Tobin can’t tell if the whole world has moved in slow motion, or Christen is moving particularly slowly on purpose, but a hurricane of feelings stirs up in Tobin watching her lips wrap around the strawberry, sucking the juices as she bites through it. She watches wide eyed as Christen pulls back and moans slightly, “mmm, nothing better than getting the last bite”. 

Tobin bites the other half from the stem of the strawberry and turns away to throw the stem into the grass, using the moment to try and calm down and reduce the red blush she’s sure is covering her face. When she turns back, Christen is smiling at her cheekily, “you okay there?” 

“Oh yeah”, Tobin responds, not bothering in the end to cover up her feelings.

Christen reaches in to her jacket pocket and takes her phone out, “I need to head back I’m afraid”, she says. She reaches for Tobin’s hand once again, “thank you so much for this Tobin, this has definitely been the best lunch break of the week”

“It’s only Monday!” Tobin responds, incredulous. 

Christen winks at her, or tries at least, her effort coming out as both eyes blinking, just one slightly less than the other. 

“Was that an attempt at winking?” 

“Oh, leave me alone, I have a great wink”

“You have a cute wink”, Tobin fires back. 

Christen stands, “Anyway, criminal, that was a great meeting.” She extends her hand to drag Tobin up off the blanket. 

“Back to attorney/client now, are we?” Tobin asks

“How about friends?” Christen responds, holding out her hand for Tobin to shake.

Tobin tugs on Christens hand, pulling her into her and wrapping her arms around her waist, “I hug my friends goodbye”, she murmurs into Christen’s ear as Christen wraps her arms around Tobin’s shoulders in return. 

Christen takes a deep breath before moving away and putting some distance between them again. “I should go”, she starts walking backwards away from Tobin, “Remember, you need to write down the plan and send it over as soon as possible. If you need anything, just give Vince a call”. 

“Yes ma’am!” Tobin replies, in a military fashion. Christen shakes her head and turns away from Tobin. 

Tobin collapses back on to the blanket, staring up at the clouds moving across the blue sky, a smile plastered on her face.


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Feeling a bit better about this now. Thank you so much for the comments, it really is motivation to keep going!! I'm not so happy with some of the earlier chapters, so debating going back and editing some of the rubbish bits... 
> 
> Hope you enjoy.

Following their lunch date – not a date, business lunch – Tobin internally corrects herself; she launches herself into her community outreach requirement. She packs up the picnic and takes a walk through the park, working through ideas in her head of how to meet the requirement set by the state, but also do something that can actually make a difference to the local community. She reflects on her path to the pro level. Yes – she had a fantastic coach who developed her as a player, he facilitated introductions to the youth teams and referred her to the national programs, but she never would have got to where she was today without her parents funding her progression, flying her all over the country to where she needed to be. Soccer is one of the most accessible sports in the world, all you need is a ball and a couple of hoodies to thrown down as your goalposts. Yet, success in soccer is inaccessible to the masses, reserved for those with money behind them. The realization stirs deep down within Tobin, her need to make this more than a short term plan and look at how she can actually make a difference.

She jogs away from the park, jumping in her car and heading home. She bursts through the front door, kicking her shoes off, dumping her backpack on the kitchen floor with a thud.

“You scared me Tobin!” shouts Cindy from the dining table, where she’s sat doing a crossword, “what’s the rush?”

“Sorry mom, I’ll explain in a minute”. She runs upstairs and grabs her laptop from her room, starting it up as she carries it down the stairs, balancing it on one arm while trying to type her password with the other and walking down the stairs simultaneously. Her mom spots her through the door.

“You’re going to drop that if you’re not careful!”

Tobin stops to finish typing her password, then leaps the last couple of stairs before taking a seat at the table, opposite her mom. She immediately gets to work on her laptop.

“Are you going to tell me what’s going on here?” Cindy questions.

“I’m.. ummm…. I’m planning…. For the… yeah…” Tobin trails off.

Cindy leans over, pushing the lid of Tobin’s laptop down to meet her eyes over the top of it and raises and eyebrow.

“Now, I know you weren’t a huge fan of school honey, but for someone with a degree in Communications, that was a poor effort”, Cindy laughs

“Good one”, Tobin rolls her eyes good naturedly. “I have to come up with a plan to fulfil my community service requirement. I had some ideas and I want to try and get them down so I don’t forget”

“Community Service requirement? So I’m guessing Ms Press has spoken with the prosecutors?”

Tobin lifts the lid of her laptop again, opening up a browser and Word to start her research. “Yeah, they’re charging me with an Inf…something. I’ll have to pay for them to paint over my artwork – which, by the way, should not be fair.”

“Tobin… don’t start”, her mother warns.

Tobin huffs, continuing, “Christen asked for them to make sure there was privacy in the deal, so they’ve come up with an alternate to community service so no pictures start circulating of me in an orange vest on the side of the highway. I have to present a plan to them of how I’ll achieve the same amount of community service through another route”.

“So, what are you thinking of doing?”

“I don’t know exactly yet. I think I want to focused on disadvantaged youth in the community and how we can get them into soccer programs. But I want it to go further than being a youth club for kids with nowhere else to go. I want to make sure that if these kids have a future in the sport, they have access to the resources they need to succeed.” She looks her mom in the eye, “I’ll never not be grateful for everything you did for me to get to where I am today mom, but I’m sure there are kids out there who could have been better than me had they been given the opportunities I was”

Cindy reaches over and grabs her hand, “Oh honey, I’m sure that’s not the case. You’ve worked so hard to get to where you are today. But I do understand the idea. As a stay at home mom, I never needed to worry about getting you to practice or childcare. We were lucky to be able to afford the cross-country flights when you travelled all over the place for those OPD things..”

“ODP mom”, Tobin chuckles. She nods back down to her laptop, “I’m going to get started if you don’t mind”

“Sure darling, let me know if you want to run any ideas past me, I might not be a soccer player, but I’m a good listener”

“Thanks mom”

For the next few hours, Tobin scribbles notes on to a piece of newspaper her mom ripped off for her when she got annoyed with Tobin leaning over all the time. She types up her notes as she goes, making them presentable for whoever ends up reading them. She surfs the internet to get ideas from existing programs and researches locally to try and get a feel for how big this project could be.

She frequently asks her mom questions as well as her opinion and Cindy helps to add to Tobin’s ideas. Cindy becomes a treasure trove of answers when Tobin starts asking more about the local area, having helped her sisters evaluate local schools for their children. Despite having grown up here, a lot changes in 15+ years away.

Finally, at about 6pm, Cindy comes in with a plate of dinner, nudging Tobin’s laptop to the side and putting it down in front of her.

“Take a break and eat please”, Cindy says as she puts the food down.

“You realize I’m old enough to know how to look after myself?”

“I’ll never stop trying to look after you sweetheart. It’s nice to have my baby girl back with me”

Tobin smiles, bashfully. Honestly, she thought it would be harder to come back home after so many years away. After all, she hadn’t lived at home since she left for college, so once the trade was finalized, her plan had been to find her own place as soon as possible. The initially frantic search had slowed dramatically and at this point was pretty much non-existent. Despite her fussing about Tobin eating and looking after herself, her mom mostly left her to her own devices.

Cindy breaks her out of her thoughts, “So, when are you going to tell me more about Christen, huh?”

“I just told you what she said”, Tobin deflects

“That’s not what I mean and you know it”

“There’s nothing to tell, mom”

“Mmhmm”, her mom looks over, one eyebrow raised.

Tobin bursts out laughing, “even if there was something to tell, I wouldn’t be telling you!”

“Tobin Powell Heath! I demand you tell me now”

They are now both in fits of laughter, Tobin wiping the tears from the corners of her eyes, “did you just full name me?”

Cindy nods, then stands to collect their plates, “come on, call it a night on the planning”

Tobin mumbles in agreement, moving into the living room, collapsing on to the sofa and grabbing the remote, ideas still swarming in her mind as she settles down for the night.

The following morning, Tobin leaves earlier than normal for training, hoping to get a lifting session completed in the gym in ahead of formal training. The training regimen she imposes on herself is stricter than the club requires but she likes to make sure she maintains her position in the top 10% in fitness tests for club and country. She grabs her training bag and her laptop from the passenger seat of her car and heads in to the training ground. She spots Alyse arriving into the car park and hangs around to grab her on her way in.

“Hey Alyse, how you doing?”

“I’m good thank you Tobin, you’re hear early?” Alyse responds

“Yeah, I want to get a quick session in with the weights before training starts. I didn’t get round to doing any training yesterday, so I’ve got some making up to do”

Alyse chuckles, “You know we give you a day off for a reason?”

Tobin shrugs in response, “Actually, I need to speak to you. Have you got some time this afternoon?”

“Sure, I’ll be free once you’re finished, I’m not sure if Laura will be though”

“That’s okay, it’s only you I need to speak with”

“That sounds ominous, everything okay?” Alyse asks, narrowing her eyes at Tobin.

“Absolutely, I just need to run something by you. Oh and I guess update you on my convict status”

Alyse pushes Tobin’s shoulder, rolling her eyes at the same time “Go. Practice. I’ll see you later”

“Later boss”, Tobin replies, throwing up a shaka sign for good measure.

After a gruelling practice session, Tobin gets showered and changed before heading upstairs to Alyse’s office. The door is open and Tobin walks in, laptop in hand.

“Yo Alyse, waddup?”

“Hey Tobin, looked like a good session today”, she nods towards the window behind her which looks over the training pitch.

“Yeah, I’m feeling good, confident. I’ve been working on some plays with Poppy. We’ve been watching video on the team for this weekend, we’re focusing on their right back, she’s slow on transition”

Alyse raises an eyebrow at her, “You know there’s a chance she won’t play this weekend, right?”

Tobin shrugs, “We’ll see. I’m confident in her abilities. I don’t see Laura is going to have a choice when she sees what we’ve been working on”

Alyse laughs, “who’s the coach in this team?”

“You made me captain! I’m just trying to get the best out of the team!” Tobin chuckles back.

“I know and you’re doing a good job, so thank you. Anyway, I’m sure you’re not here to talk about Poppy. What’s wrong?”

“Nothing wrong, boss. I met with my attorney. They’ve promised full privacy, so don’t worry, no one will know you’re harbouring a fugitive. They want me to do community service, but they’re letting me come up with my own ideas for it, so it won’t be obvious that it’s court ordered.”

“That’s great Tobin, and that’ll be it?”

“They’re fining me too. It’s probably the best outcome though, so I suppose I should be grateful”

“Definitely”, Alyse grows serious, “it could have been much worse Tobin”

“I know, I know… you don’t need to tell me.”

“So is that it?”

“No. My community service requirement – I don’t just want to do something meaningless to meet their needs, I want to actually do something we can build on.”

“Oh no…” Alyse starts, “What do you want?”

Tobin laughs, “What does that mean??”

“You’re going to ask for something, I can see it on your face. And I don’t like negotiating with you Tobin”

“Why not?” Tobin asks, incredulous.

“Because it never works in my favor! You turn up at my office and make me trade for you, then for Lindsey. They were expensive trades. And you insisted we keep Poppy in our international slots. You know Alex was super pissed at being traded”

“I know and I’ll be forever grateful. But when we win you the league with us, it’ll be worth it” Tobin winks, causing Alyse to gasp a laugh out.

Alyse leans back in her chair, “hit me then”

Tobin opens up her laptop. “I want to start an academy”

“We have an academy”

“Okay wrong word… a youth development I guess? I want a way of us being able to not only evaluate youth talent, but help to nurture and sponsor youngsters who have the potential to become fantastic players. You know as well as I do, it takes money to become a professional athlete, especially here in the US. I want to help diversify the pool of US players, give opportunities to those who deserve it”

“And how does that work?”

“So, here’s what I’m thinking. We reach out to local girls clubs and get them involved in a league, sponsored and organised by us. I’m thinking 16 teams to begin with, from the most disadvantaged parts of the area. We minibus them to here, Tuesdays and Fridays, they have training, 4 teams at a time, so they all get a session once every two weeks with some of the players after we wrap training. Then matches on a Saturday or Sunday, when we don’t have a game”

“And what’s the benefit to the club?”

“You get to evaluate over 180 youth players from the area over a whole season. Plus, obviously the publicity. You can even pretend it’s your idea”, Tobin adds, knowing Alyse would never take credit.

“Ha, thanks Tobin… And how do we staff it?”

“Each club has to bring their own coach, to be responsible for the kids. I’ll be there for every training session and the matches, that’s how I will meet my community service requirement. I’ll need three more players for the training sessions, but I’ll manage that with the team.”

“Seem to have all your bases covered here. But where does the money come from? You’re talking about hiring minibuses for all of the kids, plus referees for the games, equipment that we need more of, or for any that gets damaged”

“Here”, Tobin turns her laptop around, showing a spreadsheet she’d curated the night before. “I’d want 2% of the ticket purchases from our matches. We’d need to set up a Foundation, but it would go into their as a company donation, so it would be tax-free. Provided we keep up our levels of attendance, which we will because we’re going to win the league, that’ll fund the operating costs every month. We’ll fundraise as well for anything additional and I will be the first donor”

“Wow, you’re really passionate about this, huh?” Alyse responds

“Yeah, boss, I really am. I want to start making a difference in some way. The world is a pretty crappy place at the moment, and anything I can do to start making a change is important to me”

Alyse smiles coyly. To be honest, when Tobin had come to her and asked to be traded here, she didn’t let it show, but she was thrilled. Not only was this one of the best players in the world, but Alyse had heard about her status in the teams she’d been on. A natural leader, but in a non-aggressive way, always eager to mentor others and promote good culture in her teams. Since her move, this had been proven time and time again, Tobin becoming the heart of the team quickly, players who had been at the club for a long while respecting her instantly, the couple who didn’t leaving the team quickly. When they had announced Tobin as captain, the room erupted in applause, not a single frustrated face.

“I’m going to have to take this to the board, I can’t decide this”

“I know. There’s more too…”

“What now?” Alyse says, widening her eyes, but the sarcasm in her tone evident.

“I want to start a sponsorship program. If we spot a kid in the season that we think has the potential to make it, I want to sponsor them to the pro leagues. We’ve got the connections to the youth teams, so we can get them in, but I’d like to look at sponsoring travel for these and also for college. We can’t fund college, but I want to make sure we do our best to get them a scholarship and get them there.”

Alyse takes a long breath out, “I don’t know Tobin. That’s not going to be easy to sell. Look, how about I start with the youth season idea first. We’re not going to spot a superstar on day one, we’ve got a whole year, so let’s start there, okay?”

“Absolutely”

“I’ll bring it up with the board and I’ll let you know. I like the idea though. And if the costs are as low as you projected, I can’t see them disagreeing. There might be some liability issues, but we can work that out”

“Thanks Alyse, I really appreciate it”

“Sure Tobin, we’re meeting on Monday. I’ll keep you updated. Now go home so I can finish up and leave myself”

Tobin jumps up from her seat, “Later boss, see you tomorrow”.

Tobin heads out of the office, heading out to her car. She throws her bag into the trunk and sinks in to the drivers seat. She takes a deep breath and dials Vince’s number, ready to share her idea with Christen.

“Davidson & Reed, Christen Press’ office, how may I help?”

“Hey Vince, it’s Tobin Heath”

“Ah, Ms Heath, how are you? Hey, I just wanted to say thanks for the tickets for the game on Saturday. We’re looking forward to cheering you on”

“Anytime dude, it’s no bother to me. Look, I need to schedule an appointment with Christen for some time in the next week, what you got for me?”

“Sure, bear with me for a minute….” He hums through the phone, Tobin hearing the click-click of his mouse, “I can fit you in Tuesday or Wednesday morning, otherwise Thursday lunchtime?”

“I’m in training until mid-afternoon on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday… I can’t miss another session”, she goes quiet, thinking on a solution.

“I’m really sorry Tobin, there are no other available times, Christen is in court for two afternoons and that takes out most of the day I’m afraid.”

“Is she there now?”

“Yes, she’s just between clients”

“Any chance you can put me through?”

“Let me check with her…” the line goes silent, a small beep-beep sound indicating Vince had put the line on hold. He comes back with a click, “putting you through now Tobin, I’ll see you on Saturday. I’ll be the miserable one with the over-excited husband”

Tobin laughs, “thanks Vince, see you there”

The phone rings three times, Tobin’s nerves starting to appear. The soft, silky voice, quickly becoming her favorite sound answers, “Ms Heath, to what do I owe this pleasure?”

“This pleasure, huh? Just seeing how my favorite attorney is doing”

“I’m good, busy. What’s up?”

“Yeah, so I’ve heard. I’m trying to book an appointment to go through my community service plan, which you will be glad to know, is already completed. I just need you to double check if it’s going to definitely meet the requirements of the courts.”

“You know I have a perfectly good assistant just outside the door who owns my schedule?”

Tobin rolls her eyes and responds sarcastically, “yes, thank you, I am fully aware of Vince. Apparently, however, the world is conspiring against us. All the times you are free, I have to be at training, so next week isn’t going to work.”

Christen hums, thinking as she does, “I really do need to submit it by next week, I want to get this closed off urgently, the longer we wait, the bigger the risks of something going wrong…”

Tobin gasps theatrically, “Are you saying you don’t want to be my attorney anymore?”

Christen goes quiet, contemplating what to say next, “No Tobin, I don’t want to be your attorney anymore” she says quietly. The momentary dropping of her guard stunning Tobin in to silence.

“Um… okay… good” Tobin manages to get out before taking a deep breath. “So, while we’re still in this attorney/client phase, may I suggest a business dinner to wrap this up?”

“Tobin…” Christen starts.

“Business lunch worked!” Tobin interrupts, “I promise, just a business dinner. I’ll make sure it’s a mediocre restaurant and I won’t even dress up…” she is met by silence, “I’ll even make you pay”

Christen giggles, the sound music to Tobin’s ears, “I don’t eat at mediocre restaurants”

“Fine. You choose. It can all be on your terms” Tobin concedes.

“Thursday, 7pm, Old Siam Thai House. It’s on the same street as my apartment.”

Tobin breaks in to a smile, pumping her fist silently in victory on the other end of the phone.

“It’s a date” she says, cheekily.

“No Tobin, it’s not. No funny business, okay?”

“I will be the most serious I’ve ever been”

“Goodbye Tobin, see you next week”, Christen brings the conversation to a close before Tobin can cross any more lines.

“Bye Christen…” the call disconnects and Tobin looks down at the phone in her hand and sees her smile reflected in the black screen.

Tobin sits in front of her locker, headphones on, listening to her pump up playlist while she laces up her cleats. She feels a tap on her shoulder and looks to her right just in time to see Poppy plop down next to her. She pushes her headphones down to hang around her neck.

“Waddup kid?” she asks, the concern on Poppy’s face immediately evident.

“Nothing. Just nervous, came over for an ego boost”

Tobin scoffs, “And what makes you think you’re going to get one of those?”

Poppy smiles at her, “Cause you said you believe in me and that you think I’m going to be better than you in the future”

“You are not going to be better than me and I certainly did not say that”, Tobin laughs, “But I do believe in you.”

“Will you buy me dinner if I score again?”

“Honestly, the cheek of it… no, I will not”

Poppy shrugs, “Hey, bribery worked last time, so I guess if you want to lose…”

Tobin rolls her eyes, “If… IF… you score today. I’ll get my mom to make you dinner.”

“And you’ll drive me home?”

“Yes, I’ll drive you home”

Deep down, Tobin knows it’s not about bribery. Poppy left her family to come over here, a family she’s incredibly close to and misses dearly. She arrived knowing nobody and in the last few months, Tobin had really come to love her as a little sister. And she fit well into Tobin’s life. Despite their age difference, they held a lot of the same views and opinions, had similar interests, both being huge sport fans. Their laid back personalities meaning comfortable silence existed between them. Poppy got on well with Cindy and Tobin knew she appreciated her mom making a fuss of her, getting the motherly attention she had been missing so much.

Poppy leans over, resting her head on Tobin’s shoulder, Tobin wrapping her arm around her in return. She holds her there for a second, then taps her side, straightening up, “come on kid, let’s get out there and kick some butt”.

The game mostly goes to plan, late in the first half, the planned play for Tobin and Poppy to get around the right-back, taking her out of the game goes perfectly, they both storm towards goal, the ball at Poppy’s feet. They’re two against one with the only center back who has made it back in time. Tobin peels off to the left, knowing she’ll drag the center back with her to cut off the pass. Poppy jinks to the right, pulls back and shoots. The ball hits the back of the net with a satisfying ripple and Poppy sprints over to Tobin, jumping on her, before they’re surrounded by their teammates.  
They see out the game in the second half, keeping possession and frustrating the opposition into some reckless challenges. Laura pulls Tobin out of the game at the 80th minute, stopping her as she heads to the bench, “great game, thought I’d bring you out before their number 4 ends your career with another swipe at your ankles”. Tobin grabs a jacket and a drink before standing in front of the bench, cheering on her team as they finish out the game.

Following the post-game celebrations, Tobin gets herself showered and heads to the car park, chucking her bag in the back seat and choosing to lean against her car outside as she waits for Poppy, soaking up the sunshine while it’s there.

Alyse heads out of the stadium and spots Tobin, making a beeline for her. “Good game today Tobin, the team is really starting to look in sync. Maybe your dream of winning the NWSL this year isn’t completely crazy...” she smiles.

“Haha, you just wait and see.”

“I just wanted to let you know, I’ve spoken to the Chairman, he likes your idea. He thinks it’ll be great publicity for the club and he thinks the costs are reasonable. He’d like to put an spin on it for the fans, look at inviting them to some of the games so it becomes self-funding, but ultimately, I think you’ll be getting the go ahead on Monday”

“Yes! That’s great news, thanks for letting me know Alyse” Tobin grins, excitedly.

“No worries Tobin, thanks for the win today, catch you soon”

“Later Alyse” Tobin replies as Alyse heads to her car.

Poppy heads towards her, “What was that about?” she asks, nodding towards where Alyse is walking away.

“Get in the car, I’ll explain on the way home, I might need your help…” Tobin trails off, getting into the car.

“Oh boy, here we go!” Poppy exclaims theatrically, causing Tobin to laugh.

“Get in, goofball, I’m hungry!”

Tobin explains all about her community service requirement on the way home and the plan she put to Alyse and now, the board. Poppy nods along, asking questions, showing genuine interest.

Tobin finishes her explanation, then turns towards Poppy, “So I was thinking…”

Poppy’s face drops, “What?”

“That you’d be a player coach with me...?”

“Every Tuesday and Friday?” Poppy groans.

“Well it’s not like you’ve got anything better to do!” Tobin teases.

“Excuse you! I’m very popular and I have many plans!” Poppy responds in her poshest British accent.

“Kid, you’re coming to hang out with your team mate and her mom on a Saturday night, let’s get serious here”

They both laugh, “Right in the jugular with that one!” Poppy chuckles out, grabbing her neck in mock pain.

“So, what do you say?” Tobin’s tone returning to serious.

“I think it’s great Tobin, it’s the kind of thing I would have really benefitted from. And you know I’ll support. I’m just sending my massage bill to you”

“Oh boo hoo. You have permanent access to a massage therapist at the club, you’ll get over it”

They finish the journey in comfortable silence, pulling into Tobin’s driveway before both grabbing their bags from the backseat and heading inside.

“Hey mom” Tobin shouts to Cindy as she walks in, “hope you don’t mind, I brought this lonely wanderer back with me.”

Cindy looks behind Tobin to Poppy, “not at all!” she heads over to Poppy, grabbing her bag from her, “I’ll get that cleaned for you”

“Oh, you really don’t have to Cindy”

“Nonsense, anyway, I saw the game, top scorer of the month now!” she says, pride evident on her face as she rubs the top of Poppy’s head.

“Oiiiii”, Poppy moans, moving away from her hand, “you’re going to mess up my braids”

Cindy just laughs, picking up Tobin’s bag from where she dropped it in the entry way and taking both of them through to the utility room. She shouts back “dinner will be an hour or so if that’s okay?”

“Sure mom” Tobin responds, flopping on the sofa and turning the television on. Poppy joins her, sitting in the armchair next to the sofa, putting her feet up on the coffee table. Tobin flicks on the TV and looks over at Poppy, “Basketball okay?” she asks, the first sport program she sees on at that time.

Poppy just grunts in approval, content in what was quickly becoming her home away from home.

They eat dinner together, Cindy asking them both questions about the game and the season. They discuss Tobin’s idea for the youth outreach program and the possibility of it becoming a reality sooner than expected.

“I forgot to mention” Cindy pipes up, as they finish off dinner, “I said I’d meet Perry and the kids at the park for a bit, you want to come?”

Tobin shrugs, looking over at Poppy, “up to this one really, I said I’d drop her home”

Poppy looks at them both, “I really don’t mind, I’ve put you out enough already…”

“Drop the politeness”, Tobin chides her playfully, “do you wanna come or not? I’ll drop you back after”

A wry smile appears on Poppy’s face, “I’d love to if it’s okay”

“That’s settled then” Cindy states, getting up to clear the table, “let’s get going”

They walk down to the local park, Perry’s eldest spotting them from across the field, making a beeline for Tobin, “Aunt!” he screams as he runs towards her, his arms lifted in the air. He runs and jumps, Tobin ducking slightly to catch him on time.

“Woah dude, you need to stop doing that! I’m going to drop you one of these days!”

He laughs, cuddling in to her, “Guess what, Aunt To-To? I got my new sneakers on”. He points down to his feet, covered with a junior pair of Jordan’s.

Tobin gasps theatrically, “They’re sick dude! They’re better than mine!”

He beams proudly, lapping up the attention. Tobin puts him down just as Perry is approaching them.

“Tucker, I told you not to run off like that”, she says sternly.

“Sorry mommy” Tucker replies, hiding behind Tobin’s legs, hoping if he doesn’t show his face, he can’t get in trouble.

Perry applies the brake to the double stroller, giving her mom and Tobin a quick hug each. She turns to face Poppy, “and you must be the infamous Poppy?”

Poppy looks up shyly, “That’s me”

“Well it’s lovely to meet you, I’ve heard a lot about you from these two”, she says gesturing to Cindy and Tobin before giving Poppy a quick hug too.

Tucker grabs Tobin’s jacket sleeve, “can I go and play on the park now please? I wanna show you how high I can climb!”

“Sure thing dude…”, she kneels down so she’s eye level with him, making sure she has his full attention, maintaining a beat of silence, before yelling, “race you there!” and setting off running.

Tucker screams with joy, the crazy type of laughter that only comes from children, chasing after her as fast as he can. Tobin lets him overtake her before running past him again and sticking his tongue out. A few yards from the park, she fakes tripping up, rolling around on the grass. He laughs hysterically before jumping on her.

“I win! I win!” he chants, and before he can continue, Tobin grabs his sides, holding him close to her and tickling his sides and armpits. “Stop! Stop! I’m gonna pee!” he warns, Tobin quickly releasing him with a laugh. She gets up, dusting herself off with a promise of watching him on the climbing frame.

Cindy grabs her other grandson from the pram, letting her granddaughter out at the same time. She nods to Poppy, “fancy helping me push these two on the swings?”

They head over to the swings, leaving Tobin and Perry stood together with the stroller. Tobin shakes her head in disbelief, “how crazy is it that you have three kids now?”

“I know, right?” Perry replies, turning to face Tobin, “they love having you home again Tobes… we all do”

“Thanks, sis”, Tobin replies softly, leaning her head on her older sister’s shoulder, “it’s nice to be home”

“So tell me, what’s going on with you?” her sister asks as she wraps her arm around Tobin’s shoulder.

“Nothing much. I play soccer, I eat, I sleep, I paint sometimes”

“Tobin…” Perry draws out her name

“What?” Tobin asks, pulling away from her sister.

Perry just looks at her, eyebrow raised.

Tobin is hit with a moment of realization. She looks over to her mom, “what have you two been talking about?”

“Oh nothing much. Just apparently how you have a huge crush on your attorney”

Tobin throws her hands up, “Oh I do not have a huge crush! For goodness sake!” Her face turning a bright shade of red, instantly proving her to be lying.

“Oh you doooo!” Perry draws out, “Tell me about her then”

“No”

“Go on, what does she look like? What’s her interests? When are you asking her out?”

“Perry…”

“Ooh, when are you getting married? Ooh ooh, have babies too, then we can all come here together!”

“Perry… please, I beg you… stop” Tobin sighs out.

“I’m only kidding sis. C’mere”, she pulls her in for another hug as they watch the kids playing with Poppy and Cindy, “I just want you to be happy, that’s all. It’s been a while since you’ve seriously been with anyone and you deserve happiness. I do hope it works out and if you ever want to actually talk about it, and I’ll refrain from making any jokes, you know where I am”

“I know Per, thank you. She’s just… amazing. She’s gorgeous and she’s super smart and she’s witty and she’s funny, but in the kind of way where she doesn’t even realize. She’s probably way out of my league too…”

“Excuse me, no-one is out of the league of the Heath’s” Perry jokes, getting a chuckle out of Tobin.

“We’ll see. For now, I can’t even ask her out until she’s not my attorney anymore.”

“That should be this week though, right?”

“Fingers crossed…” Tobin replies

“Hey mom, To-To, come watch me go down the slide! I can go down on my tummy!” Tucker shouts over. Perry releases Tobin from her side hug, links their arms and heads into the park area.

Tobin checks her phone, 18:57, double checking the sign above her to make sure it still reads Old Siam House, as it did at 18:52 and 18:48 and when her maps directed her here. She put on 3 different outfits when she was getting ready before settling on her standard – black skinny jeans, a white tee and a black leather jacket, the cooler evenings making it a necessity. She pulled on her Jordan’s before her mom tutted at her, telling her to make a real effort, throwing a pair of grey Chelsea boots at her. She made sure to blow dry her hair and put a bit of eye make up on. She didn’t want to appear too invested, but also wanting to look good at the same time.

She looks down the street towards Christen’s apartment building, spotting the dark haired woman as soon as she comes into view. She’s floored, Christen is wearing a short, black, tailored dress, with a khaki peacoat over the top, complete with strappy heels. Her unruly curls straightened to within an inch of their lives, light make up on her face. She strides towards Tobin, smiling at her with a breathy “hey”.

“Hey…” Tobin replies, trying to get her jaw from the floor, “you look absolutely incredible Christen.”

Christen blushes, “No I don’t… I’m sorry, I had to come straight from court”

Tobin chokes on air, “you look like that in court? Gosh I’m glad I’m settling with a deal, I wouldn’t make it through a court hearing”

Christen chuckles, slapping her lightly on the top of the arm, “Oi you, business meeting, remember?” she turns on her heel and heads for the restaurant entrance. Tobin jumps just ahead of her, opening the door for her before ushering her in, gaining a grin from Christen in response.

The hostess shows them to their table, handing them menu’s before asking what they would like to drink. Christen scans the menu, “ugh, I could really do with a glass of wine after that day”

“Yeah?” Tobin asks, “I’d be up for that”

Christen looks up from the menu, smiling at her, “red okay?” Tobin nods in agreement. She glances at the menu again, “Umm, a bottle of the Cabernet Sauvignon please” before handing the menu back to the hostess.

“That bad, eh?” Tobin asks, settling back in her seat as Christen tells her about her day. A late appointment in the morning overrunning, meaning she’d had no lunch break before going in to court. What should have been a quick in and out hearing in front of the judge taking much longer thanks to her client who couldn’t help but shout out every time he disagreed with something they said.

“Honestly, those people are the worst. I am literally hired to speak for them. They’re paying me for that” Christen says, incredulous, getting a laugh from Tobin.

The waitress arrives with the bottle of wine, showing it to Christen for her approval, she nods and the waitress opens the bottle, “would you like a taste, madam?”

“Oh no, just pour it, I’m sure it’ll be fine”

Tobin raises her eyebrows, somewhat surprised.

“What?” Christen asks, catching her eye.

“Oh nothing”

“What, Tobin?”

“Nothing… I just would have picked you as the type of person to taste the wine is all”

“What do you mean by that?”

“Nothing, I just thought you’d taste it first”

“What difference does it make?”

Tobin sighs, “nothing… just, you come across as very…” she tries to think of the right word, ending up choosing one from Poppy’s British vocabulary, “proper”

“Proper?” Christen questions, a sly smile on her face, enjoying watching Tobin dig herself a hole.

“You know what I mean. You’re very together”

The waitress finishes off pouring both of them a glass, a smirk on her face from overhearing the conversation as she places the bottle down and walks off.

Christen picks up her glass, lifting it towards Tobin, “I think I’ll take that as a compliment”

Tobin touches her glass against Christens, “you definitely should”

They make their way through dinner, both opting for a main and a dessert, Tobin groaning as she thinks about having to work off both the dessert and the wine tomorrow. The conversation flows naturally, both of them talking about their weeks before they get on to the real reason for dinner.

Tobin talks her through the youth program plan she’s made with the club, Christen agreeing with it, confident the courts will agree to it, as long as she documents the hours she will be putting in to it. She gives Tobin some tips around how to manage the financials and what the club will need to do to set aside profits as charitable funds. She tells Tobin to get the club to give her a call if they have any questions around the legal implications of it, Tobin’s heart fluttering at the wholeness of the woman in front of her, her feelings for her growing by the second.

They finish off the bottle of wine, both feeling a little tipsy. The server brings the check over, placing it on the table between them. Tobin naturally goes to grab it, but just before she can pick it up, Christen swipes it away from her.

“Nope”, Christen says, popping the ‘p’, “this one is on me”

“Christen… please let me get it, this was my suggestion”, Tobin says, holding her hand out for the check.

Christen shakes her head, “no, no, no, no, not today, no sir-ee!”

Tobin chuckles, this woman in front of her might be the most adorable person she’s ever met.

Tobin excuses herself, heading for the bathroom. But before she gets there, she stops at the hostess stand and quickly pays the bill, before continuing to the bathroom and heading back to the table. Christen gestures to the server who comes over to their table, “Could I pay the check please?” she says, holding her card out.

The server looks at her, confused, “Oh, it’s already been paid”

“Huh?” Christen asks, confused, struck by a moment of realization as she turns to face Tobin.

“You didn’t??” she asks, incredulous

“Didn’t what?”

“Did you pay when you went to the bathroom?!”

“I plead the fifth!” Tobin laughs

“Oh good one!” Christen says sarcastically, laughing along at this point. “Thank you”, she says softly, reaching over to cover Tobin’s hand with her own. Tobin turns her hand over so her palm is now against Christen’s, before wrapping her fingers around Christen’s hand.

“You’re welcome”, she replies, so softly, it’s almost inaudible.

Christen stares down at their conjoined hands. She clears her throat, “I suppose I’d best get home, early start tomorrow”, she slides her hands out of Tobin’s grip.

“Sure”, Tobin pushes her chair back from the table and stands, “I’ll walk you back to your apartment”

Christen stands up and they head out of the restaurant, “You don’t need to do that, it’s only up there”

“I know where it is, I’m kinda parked outside” Tobin replies, slightly embarrassed.

Christen giggles, “Okay, you can walk me home then”, linking her arm through Tobin’s as they head up the road.

They get to Christen’s apartment block, neither wanting to end the evening. They turn to face one another, both afraid to say goodbye, this energy between them holding them in place.

Christen is the first to break the silence, “so I’ll speak to the courts tomorrow, I’ll let you know what they say, but hopefully we can get the documents drafted tomorrow and signed and submitted by Monday”

“Yeah, that sounds great Christen…” Tobin says, the disappointment clear in her voice. She takes her car key out of her pocket, and goes to unlock it.

“Hey”, Christen stops her.

Tobin jolts her eyes up to meet Christen’s, “Yeah?”

“Umm… I’m just thinking… maybe you shouldn’t drive yet. Like, we had wine, so…”

“Yeah?” Tobin wills her to continue.

“You could come for coffee, maybe?” Christen nods towards her apartment.

“Yeah?” Tobin doesn’t want to pressure.

“But just coffee. Okay? Friend coffee or something. No funny business”

Tobin can’t help but smile, her eyes crinkling, “Okay, no funny business”

“I’m serious Tobin. You need to stop looking at me like you’re looking at me now”

Tobin shrugs, “I’m not looking at you like anything”

“One coffee”

“One coffee” Tobin agrees.

Christen turns to walk in to the apartment building, a mixture of excitement and terror in her veins. Tobin follows behind, her heart working a million miles an hour as she follows the woman of her dreams, literally.


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> What a week, eh? I didn't really know how to approach the events of this week, but given some of the topics I've explored in this story, I've made the decision to take a focus away from a certain character.. didn't want to do a Grey's Anatomy and just write them out of the story instantly, but they'll be around a lot less! 
> 
> Anyway, hope you enjoy. Keep the comments coming, I love reading them and love your opinions on where the story is going. Thank you for the kind words and the support. I'll keep going and see if I can get another chapter out soon.

"Do you take milk?"

"Huh?" Tobin turns her attention back to Christen, having taken in her surroundings. The seventh floor apartment not what she'd anticipated. The image in her head was all white lines, monochrome themes and furniture purchased for looks instead of comfort. The room around her is an open plan living space, kitchen and diner, the two walls of the living area mostly consisting of two large windows. The wooden floor giving way to tiles in the kitchen space, the modern kitchen cupboards the colour of driftwood, a shelving unit and the entertainment unit in the living space matching the color scheme. The plants and greenery on every space giving it a fresh feel and the living room dominated by a big, comfortable looking leather sofa. 

"In your coffee?" Christen asks

"Oh, no, I don't drink coffee", Tobin responds, still looking around the space, her eyes landing on a picture of Christen with two women, presumably her sisters, with a large man towering over from behind them, Tobin guesses her father. 

"Tobin!" She snaps her head round to meet Christen's gaze. "You said you wanted coffee?" 

Tobin shakes her head, snapping herself out of her daze and focusing her attention on Christen. "I only have one coffee a day, in the morning." She points down at herself, "athlete you see" 

Christen throws her hands up theatrically, "I literally invited you up for coffee, I suppose you'd best be on your way then" 

Tobin raises her eyebrows, "I thought you said I shouldn't drive yet" 

"No, you shouldn't"

They stare at each other, neither willing to be the first one to break. 

"Well I guess we find ourselves in a predicament, eh Ms Press?" 

"Well I guess we do" 

They stare a few seconds longer before Tobin looks around Christen to a built in wine rack in the kitchen. 

"So if I can't drive and I can't drink coffee..."

"Won't drink coffee", Christen butts in 

"Tell my coach that", Tobin warns, "I think the only polite thing for you to do would be to offer an alternative" 

"Who says I want to be polite?" 

"You should always be polite to your friends" 

"Mmhmm" Christen murmurs

"And we're friends remember?" Tobin says cheekily, moving ever so slightly closer to Christen, only a foot between them at this point. 

"Fine. Water?"

"No"

"I've got still or sparkling?" 

"No" 

"Juice?" 

"No"

Christen taps her chin as though deep in thought. 

"Ooh! Milk?" 

"No" 

"Almond Milk?" 

"Nooo" Tobin sings out 

"Wait. Wait. I've got it!" Christen widens her eyes in excitement, a sly grin on her face. "see that wine rack behind me..?" Christen teases, leaning even closer to Tobin. 

"Yeah", Tobin says softly, licking her lips. 

"I've got a non-alcoholic rose and lemon wine in there that I won at a raffle three years ago. Remember Marjorie from the first time you came to the office, she made it." Christen bursts out laughing. 

Tobin breaks eye contact, looking down at the floor, then swinging her gaze upwards, fully aware of what she's doing as she looks up at Christen through her eyelashes. "Christen... I suggest we get one of those nice looking bottles of wine from behind you open and continue our evening, which I must say, I have particularly enjoyed." 

"I thought you were supposed to be sobering up? What about driving home?"

"Oh, I was never gonna drive home" Tobin confesses

"But you went to get in your car?" 

"No, I went to get my house key out my car" 

"Why didn't you say anything?" 

"I figured if I waited long enough, there was a chance you'd invite me in. I wasn't going to risk that" Tobin says with a shrug, a cheeky grin on her face. 

"You. Are. Unbelievable." Christen deadpans. 

"Don't tell me you don't love it" Tobin responds with a wink. 

Christen rolls her eyes, but doesn't deny it. She has a moment of panic when Tobin starts to lean in, closing the already small gap between them. 

Just before they connect, Tobin weaves to Christens side, reaching around her. She pulls away, a bottle of wine now present in her hand. 

Christen lets out the breath she didn't realize she was holding. 

Tobin looks at the wine in her hand, then up at Christen, waggling the wine in her hand, "got a bottle opener?" 

Christen shakes her head, pushing Tobin's shoulders before opening the drawer Tobin had been leaning against and pulling out a bottle opener. She reaches into a cupboard above her head and brings down two wine glasses, before turning on her heel, kicking off her shoes and making her way over to the sofa, flopping down on to it and shouting back at Tobin, "maybe you should taste it before you serve it" 

Tobin scoffs, pouring two sizeable glasses of wine before kicking off her own shoes, and joining Christen on the sofa. She passes Christen a glass, receiving a thanks in return, then sits down on the other side of the sofa. She turns sideways on the sofa, plucking a cushion from the back of the sofa and putting it behind her, against the arm of the sofa. She brings one leg up, hooking it under her other leg which is sitting on the floor. 

Christen places her wine glass down on a side table next to her and stands up. Tobin looks up at her puzzled. 

"Be right back", she head off to another part of the apartment, where the bedroom and bathroom are Tobin assumes. 

Tobin uses the time to take a moment for herself. She takes a deep breath and thanks the stars and the moon and fate and luck for bringing this woman in to her life. She grabs her phone from her pocket, planning to quickly scan through social media while Christen is out of the room. She spots a flurry of texts. 

Mom (19:26): Are you coming home for dinner?

Mom (19.42): Sorry, forgot you're on your date 

Mom (19.43): Or not date ;-) 

Mom (20.17): Don't be too late

Mom (20.18): Don't do anything I wouldn't do

She chuckles lightly, resisting the urge to groan at her mom's childish behaviour, replacing her phone in her pocket, just as she hears Christen's footsteps heading back into the room. 

"Much better", Christen sighs out, returning to the sofa, now donning sweatpants and a hoodie. She faces Tobin, bringing both her knees up to her chin and leaning back to grab her glass of wine. 

"And you still look beautiful" Tobin compliments, Christen blushing and shaking her head. 

"No I don't" 

"You really do" Tobin says sincerely, looking into Christen's beautiful green eyes, her heart rate picking up slightly in response. 

Christen looks down at the sofa, running her finger along the piping of the cushion, knowing the line of conversation needed to end. 

The silence is broken by the sound of Tobin's phone vibrating in her pocket. She grabs it out and unlocks it, checking the message.

Poppy (21.31): How did it go? 

Oh my gosh, she thinks, I can't catch a break from this lot! 

"Who's that?" Christen asks

"Sorry", Tobin puts her phone back in her pocket, "just Poppy", she turns back to face the dark haired beauty

"And who is just Poppy to you?" Christen asks

"Honestly... It's hard to say"

"Ooookay" Christen looks away, taken aback 

"No no no, not like that" Tobin clarifies, "she's a baby. Well no, not a baby, she's 18. She's my team mate. She joined the club about the same time I did, but she moved over from England. She knows no one here and when I moved back, I didn't really either so I kinda took her under my wing. She's such a good kid though", Tobin lights up, "like, she's such a good soccer player, 100% she's going to be better than me one day but I'll never tell her that" 

Christen giggles as Tobin continues, "she's kinda become a little sister to me. She spends more time at my house than her own. She gets lonely, you know? Especially at that age, all alone in a foreign country. Plus, she loves that my mom cooks for her and does her washing" she laughs now as well. 

She goes on to tell Christen about their trip to the park the other day, how Poppy had been nervous about accepting the invite, not wanting to impose. Then how she'd entertained Tobin's niece and nephews for an hour, having them in fits of giggles as she chased them round the park. She mentions how she'd agreed to volunteer alongside Tobin and not once complained (seriously at least) about the amount of hours Tobin asked of her. 

"She sounds sweet" Christen summarises, the beaming smile on Tobin's face completely infectious, not able to stop herself from smiling back. 

"She is. You'd like her, she's smart like you" 

"You're definitely smart Tobin, and cunning... Crafty... Devious. To name a few" 

There comes that line again, they're barrelling towards it. 

"Plus, you came up with your youth program idea in one evening, not just anyone could do that" Christen adds, diffusing the tension again. She swirls the remainder of her wine around the bottom of the glass and finishes it off, "one for the road?" 

"That'd be great", Tobin replies, handing over her glass. 

As Christen refills their wine glasses, Tobin stands up from the sofa, heading over to the sideboard in front of the window. She picks up the picture she'd seen previously, confirming from this distance that they were most definitely Christen's sisters either side of her. She replaces that picture and picks up another, Christen being jumped on by two sandy colored dogs, one licking her face as she tries to look away, the other nuzzling in to her neck. She looks at a couple more, one of her and her mother, sitting side by side in front of a large Christmas tree and another of the five of them, posing together on the beach. The final picture is of Christen and a slightly taller, dark haired woman. Christen walks up behind her, handing over her glass then looking over her shoulder at the picture. 

"Having a good nosy there?" She teases 

Tobin points at the pictures, "I'm assuming that's your mom, your dad and your two sisters?" 

Christen nods "Yep, Channing and Tyler" 

She holds up the picture in her hand, "then... Who's this?"

"Umm... That's Jenni" she says, turning away and heading back to the sofa. 

"Okay..." Tobin follows her back to the sofa, "and who's she to you?" 

"She's a friend. At one point, she was more, I'm not going to lie to you. But it was never serious"

"So where is she now?" 

"Spain. She moved back there years ago." 

"And you're still in touch?" 

"Sometimes. I try to be. We were friends long before anything else." 

"Cool" Tobin says, her calm demeanor confusing Christen. 

"Is that it...?" 

"Yeah", Tobin shrugs, "we've all got history. Plus, we're just friends!" She adds with a wink. 

They finish off their wine, Tobin putting the glasses back in the kitchen and swapping them for a glass of water each. They sip their way through those, the conversation not stopping for a second, turning a little heavy again whilst they discuss their, luckily similar, views on politics. 

"I just get so angry sometimes, you know?" Tobin says, gesticulating wildly to add to her point, "I can't understand what does through people's minds? How can anyone look at another person and judge them before they've even opened their mouths? How can they judge themselves as superior to someone else because of the color of their skin or where they came from? How can people not see the inequality in this country? It's so evident, all the time and yet, it just doesn't seem to change..." She trails off, "sorry. I didn't mean to rant" 

Christen leans over and lays her hand over Tobin's knee, "hey, it's okay. I get it, I agree" 

Tobin bites on her bottom lip, "it's just so fucked sometimes. It hurts my heart to see what goes on on our doorstep. I guess that's why I wanted my artwork to mean something. That's why I'm putting my time into this youth program. I might not be able to do much, but if we all make a change, that's a great start, right?" She stares down at Christen's hand on her knee, a sadness in her eyes. 

"Hey... Hey..." Christen grabs her attention softly, "I get it, I do. And your artwork does mean something. Yeah, it might be back to being a grey wall soon enough, but it exists in images"

"Yeah right", Tobin scoffs. 

"I'm serious" Christen takes her phone from the side and scrolls to the group chat with Tyler and Channing. She scrolls back to a few weeks before, before the artist in front of her had flipped her world around. She turns her screen to face Tobin. 

"Is that... To your sisters?" Tobin connects the dots, her brow furrowed, "you'd already seen it? Wait, you took a picture of it? You never told me any of this" 

"Why do you think I took the case?" Christen asks, rhetorically. "You're not my normal type of client Tobin, but when your mom phoned and explained who you were, I wanted to take it on. Because it does matter. And even if my sisters and I are the only people who benefitted from it, which I'm absolutely sure we're not, then it has made a difference" 

Tears well up in Tobin's eyes as she reaches to grab Christen's hand, "thank you, you have no idea what that means". 

"Hey, there's no need to get upset" Christen says softly. 

"Ah, it's just the wine", Tobin deflects with a wave of the hand, "I should probably think about getting home, I'm sure it's late". She checks her phone, 00:21, "crap, it's really late! I'll order an Uber" 

"Just stay" 

"What?" Tobin responds, surprised

"Just stay, it's late, I don't want you getting an Uber at this hour" 

"You sure? I can crash on here?" She points to the sofa. 

Christen thinks a moment, already having crossed a line, "look, there's no curtains in here and I don't have a spare comforter. I have a big bed. As long as you promise to stay on your side, I'll stay on mine. But it's up to you" 

Tobin stands up, "lead the way"

Christen leads them to her room, opening her dresser and throwing Tobin a t-shirt and shorts, "here, you can wear them. I'm assuming you don't sleep in jeans?" 

"Not normally" she chuckles, reaching for the clothes, "thank you" 

"Bathroom is over the hall there", Christen says, pointing out of the door, "there should be a new toothbrush under the sink as well if you want to use it" 

They both get ready for bed, Tobin using the main bathroom and Christen using the en suite in her bedroom. Tobin climbs into the bed on the side clearly the one Christen doesn't use, made evident by the opposite bedside table which contained a book with a pair of glasses atop it and a tube of moisturizer, compared to the side she was on with an empty table. She quickly sets her alarm on her phone and puts it face down on the bedside table. 

Christen re-enters the bedroom wearing sleep shorts and a tank top, Tobin blushing at the about of skin on show and the obvious absence of a bra. Christen pulls the comforter back and gets into the bed before flicking off the light. Tobin hears the sheets rustling as Christen gets comfortable. 

"You okay there?" 

"Yeah, sorry, it always takes me a minute to get comfy" 

Tobin turns onto her side, facing Christen in the dark. 

"Thank you for tonight. I've not had this much fun in years" Tobin confesses.

Christen turns on to her side, mirroring Tobin, "me either. You're quite something Tobin. It takes a lot to break my walls down, but for some reason, I can't stop letting you in" 

Tobin reaches out for Christens hand and links it with her own between them. She moves her head forward slightly, placing a gentle kiss on Christen's hand. 

"Trust me, it's the same for me."

Tobin falls into a peaceful sleep, the mixture of Christen's steady breathing and her smell lulling Tobin to sleep. 

She wakes with a start, her hand still gripping Christen's. Christen must have rolled onto her back in the night, but their hands remained intertwined. 

It takes Tobin a second to get her bearings before a noise startles her again. She looks to her side to see the source of the noise, her phone vibrating on the bedside table. She grabs it quickly, trying not to wake Christen and runs out of the room. The phone stops ringing just as she leaves the room. Her heart sinks when she sees the screen. 

Missed Calls (3): Poppy

She looks at the time, 06:52. She goes to her call list and dials Poppy, her heart racing. If there's one thing Poppy knows about Tobin, it's to not disturb her sleep. Tobin knows she wouldn't be calling unless it was important, especially 3 times. 

She answers on the third ring. 

"Tobin...?" Poppy sounds terrified, her crying evident in the tone of her voice. 

"Poppy, what the hell is going on?" 

"I think someone's stalking me" 

"What? Why? What's happened?" 

"I got some threats. I didn't think anything of it. But I woke up this morning and someone's posted a letter through the door" 

"Posted? Like sent to you?" 

"No, it's just a note, they know where I live Tobin", Poppy replies, her voice getting higher and cracking more as she gets more and more wound up. 

"Okay, okay" Tobin says, trying to calm her down. "Wake up Lindsey, okay?" 

"She's not here"

"Where is she?" 

"I don't know, I think she stayed at her new boyfriend's place last night. Toby... Can you come get me please?" 

Shit, Tobin thinks. She's at least half an hour away at Christen's, maybe more with rush hour. 

"Poppy I'm going to phone you back, okay? Give me 2 minutes"

"Tobin, no, please don't, I'm scared" Poppy sobs down the phone. 

"Okay, I'm sorry. I'll stay on the line, just..." 

She looks around and spots Christen's landline, dialling her home number. Cindy answers almost instantly, "hello?" 

"Mom it's me"

"Oh hello sweetheart, how did your evening go? I'm guessing well..."

Tobin cuts in, "mom, I need you to go and get Poppy and bring her home" 

"Everything okay dear?"

"No, she thinks she's being stalked, she thinks she's in danger, can you just go and get her please?" 

"Of course darling, I'll leave now"

"It's on Sycamore"

"Number 117", she hears Poppy on the other line. She repeats it to her mom before thanking her and hanging up the phone. 

"She's on her way Poppy, she'll be with you in 5 minutes"

"Will you stay on the phone with me until then?" Poppy asks quietly, hiccuping through sobs. 

"Of course I will" Tobin reassures her. 

"I'm sorry I called you, I didn't know what to do. I just got scared and I don't know anyone and I..."

"Woah woah woah, calm down Poppy. I'm glad you called, okay? You can call me any time, day or night, okay?" 

A fresh round of tears hits Poppy, "Tobin, it's awful" 

"What's awful kid?" 

"The letter, the texts. I thought I could deal with it when it was just messages, I just deleted them and blocked a couple of numbers. But the letter Tobin" she sobs loudly "it's just..."

"Make sure you bring it with you, okay? Bring that and pack a bag for a few days, you're not staying there alone" 

She hears a muffled "mmhmm" from Poppy, then the sounds of her packing clothes into a bag. A couple of minutes later, Poppy pipes up again, "I think your mom is here" 

"Okay, stay on the phone until you're with her please, make sure it's definitely her"

She hears Poppy walking and a door closing before hearing a car door open and her mom's voice "oh my darling, come here", she hears Poppy's sobs, presumably dulled by her mom's sweatshirt. "I'm with your mom now Toby"

"Okay, I'll be back soon kid, as soon as I can" 

She hangs up the phone, tears pricking her eyes, her heart aching at hearing the pure fear and anxiety from Poppy. She trudges back into Christen's bedroom, seeing she'd stirred slightly from when Tobin had left the room. Tobin moves round to Christen's side of the bed and perches on the side. She grabs Christen's hand, rubbing her thumb over the top of it to gently rouse Christen awake. She opens her eyes slowly, looking confused before landing her eyes on Tobin. 

"Hey you, what's up?' 

"I'm really sorry, I need to go, there's been an emergency with Poppy" 

"Oh no, I'm sorry, is she okay? What's happened?" 

"I honestly don't really know, that's what I'm going to find out. I just wanted to say bye" 

"Okay, will you text me when you get home please so I know everything's okay?" 

"Umm, no" Tobin replies, getting a furrowed brow from Christen, "I don't have your number" she smiles down at her. 

Christen grabs her phone out of her hand and programs her number in, "now you do" she says, flopping back on to the pillow, closing her eyes. 

"Thank you for a great evening Christen, you're truly amazing" Tobin grabs her hand, placing a quick kiss in the palm. 

"Not so bad yourself" Christen replies sleepily,a grin on her face. 

Tobin takes one last look at the incredible, beautiful woman in front of her, taking a mental snapshot of how she looks so serene, her hair juxtaposing her face in a wild mess around her head. 

She grabs up her clothes, throwing them on in the bathroom before leaving the borrowed pajamas folded on the sofa. She sprints down the stairs, not wanting to wait for the elevator and jumps in to her car, speeding off down the street. 

Across town, Tobin bursts through the front door, and into the kitchen where she sees Poppy on one of the bar stools at the kitchen island, her hands wrapped around a steaming cup of tea. Her mom at the stove making breakfast for them. 

Poppy turns around at the sound of Tobin approaching, her eyes raw from crying. Tobin crashes into her, wrapping her arms around her, causing a new wave of tears to come from the younger woman. 

Tobin rubs her back soothingly, "hey hey hey, shhhh", she comforts her, "we got you, there's nothing to worry about". 

"Thank you Tobin", she mumbles into her shoulder, "I'm sorry I phoned you so early". 

Tobin pulls back, releasing Poppy and perches on the stool next to her, "don't be silly, like I said on the phone, you can always call me", she nods to her mom, "mom too, right?" 

Cindy turns around, "absolutely", she grabs Poppy's hand across the island and gives it a squeeze, "you're always welcome darling"

"Actually mom, now you mention it, I'd like Poppy to stay a few days, I don't want her at her place alone, that okay?" 

Cindy waves her hand, "of course, absolutely. I'll make up the spare room today"

Poppy looks up meekly from her tea, "thank you Cindy, I don't know how I can thank you enough"

Cindy turns back to the stove, "I don't need to be thanked Poppy", she grabs a plate from a nearby cupboard and picks up the pan, flipping an omelette onto the plate and putting it down in front of Poppy, "eat up". 

Poppy smiles with gratitude at Cindy, overwhelmed with the amount of love these two share with her and starts to eat. 

"Tobin, can I have a word?" Cindy nods towards the living room. 

"Sure mom", Tobin jumps off the stool, following her mom out of the room. 

Once they reach the living room, Cindy reaches into her pocket and unfolds a note, showing it to Tobin. The note is addressed to Poppy Diggs, followed by lines and lines of hateful and racist commentary and threats, 'you're not welcome here', 'go back to the hole you crawled out of', 'leave or I'll make you', 'you ruined my life and now I'm going to ruin yours'. Tobin reads the letter, her heart rate increasing and her palms turning sweaty. She's not sure what she expected, but frankly it wasn't this. She has a renewed understanding for Poppy's panic. 

Cindy looks at her, a concerned look shared between them, "Tobin I think we should go to the police"

Tobin nods, "I think you're right mom. I'll make sure the club knows today"

"Tell you what, you both head to training, I'll make us an appointment at the police station. I'll let you know what time, okay?" 

Tobin smiles at her mom, "that'd be amazing, thanks mom", she gives her mom a hug, pulling her in close, "thank you for letting her in to our lives, she really appreciates you" 

"Oh sweetheart, she's a great kid, it's tough for her here, if I can help that, I want to"

The break apart and head back into the kitchen where Poppy has finished half of her omelette and replaced her cutlery on the plate to signify she'd finished. Tobin grabs up her fork and tucks in to the leftovers, Poppy laughing at her actions, her mom swatting her with a tea towel. 

"I would have made you your own!" Cindy says, chuckling along with them. "Anyway, are you going to tell us where you were all night?" 

Tobin blushes, the answer immediately obvious, but she remains silent, chewing on the omelette. 

"Tobinnnn....?" Poppy sings out, "where were you?" 

"I was always told not to speak with my mouth full", Tobin replies before shovelling another chunk of omelette into her mouth.

Both Poppy and Cindy look at her pointedly. Tobin puts the fork down on the plate with a clatter before beginning, "fine. I was at Christen's" 

"All night? You dirty dog!" Poppy jokes, earning herself a swat from Cindy. 

"No, nothing like that" Tobin defends, "we had some wine with dinner and I wasn't going to drive after drinking. I meant to Uber back but it got super late so I just ended up crashing" 

"Oh", is all Cindy manages to get out, an air of disappointment to her tone, "did you at least get a good night kiss?" 

Tobin blushes again, "no and even if I did, I don't kiss and tell" 

"No offense Tobin, but that's quite pathetic", Poppy teases, her and Cindy bursting out laughing. 

"I hate you two. Both of you. I'm going for a shower and getting ready for training", she points at Poppy, "I suggest you do too, unless you want to walk". With that, she trudges out of the room, heading upstairs. 

"Don't worry, I'll take you if grumpy pants doesn't", she hears Cindy say. 

She groans loudly, enough for them to hear her, "I heard that!" 

Tobin steps into her room, lucky to have an en suite of her own. She goes to get undressed, taking her phone out of her pocket before remembering she'd promised to message Christen. 

Unknown Number (07:58): hey, it's Tobin. sorry for rushing off this morning, some weirdo has sent poppy a threatening note and some messages. thanks again for a great night, let me know how you get on today. 

Tobin jumps in the shower, quickly rinsing her body before brushing her teeth and pulling her training gear on. She goes to leave but hears a ding from her phone. 

Christen Press (08:12): Oh no, I hope she's okay. Let me know if you need any legal help/guidance. I'll be reaching out to your prosecutors this morning so we should be all wrapped up today. 

Tobin Heath (08:13): well maybe in that case I could see you this weekend? ;-) 

Christen Press (08:13): Let's see what they say first... 

They arrive at training, walking into the main foyer. Tobin stops, Poppy turning to look at her, "you not coming?" 

"No, you go ahead, I'm going to go see Alyse, okay? I'll be there shortly"

She runs up the stairs to where Alyse's office is, heading straight in as the door is open. 

"Hey Alyse" 

Alyse turns to face her, "should I be getting worried you seem to spend more time in here than you do out there?" She jokes, pointing over her shoulder to the training pitch below. 

"Ha ha" Tobin says sarcastically, "it's not about me this time" 

She sits in the seat opposite Alyse and grabs her phone out, bringing up the picture of the note she made sure to take before leaving this morning. 

"Poppy got this through her door this morning" she gives Alyse a moment to study the note, her eyebrows furrowing, then shooting up in disbelief as she makes her way through it, "we don't know who it's from, but they put not through her door, so they know where she lives. My mom's making an appointment with the police today, so we might need to leave early" 

"Sure Tobin", she waves off the request, "there's no game this weekend anyway. Oh my gosh, this is horrible, who would write this?" 

"Your guess is as good as mine..." Tobin responds, "I just don't get it. The only people Poppy knows are the people at this club. I'd call it a hoax if it wasn't for the fact her full name is on it" 

Alyse nods, humming in confirmation, "I'll let the staff know about this. You'll let me know what the police say?" 

"Yeah of course". With that, Tobin leaves the office, hoping training will be a welcome distraction, mostly for Poppy than herself. 

They start with a weight session in the morning, breaking for lunch before group training on the pitch. Tobin checks her phone as she eats. 

Mom (09:37): Appointment at station on Elm at 5.30. Will you go there from training? 

She fires off a response to her mom confirming they'll meet her there before heading over to where Poppy is sat with a couple of the other younger players. 

"Got a second?" She asks, Poppy nodding and standing up, bringing her now empty food tray with her. "Mom's booked an appointment at the police station at 5.30. We'll go from here, okay?"

"Tobin, I don't want to go to the police, I just want it to stop"

Tobin puts her hand on her shoulder, "the only way it'll stop is if someone makes it stop. They need to find out who it is. I'll be there the whole time" 

Poppy looks up at her, "promise?" 

"Absolutely I promise"

The appointment at the police station goes well, they take the note into evidence and question Poppy around who they think might be responsible. They ask her for permission to her phone records which she gladly grants, to try and trace where the messages came from previously. They inform her that they'll update them as soon as possible, agreeing with Tobin and Cindy that it's best Poppy stays with them. Poppy is asked to make sure if anything else happens, she reports it immediately to the detective assigned. 

They all leave the station feeling a little better about the whole situation, heading home to start the weekend. They agree on a takeaway, Tobin offering to pick it up while Poppy travels back home with Cindy. Waiting in the takeaway, Tobin pulls out her phone. 

Tobin Heath (18:11): just got out of police station, they're opening an investigation. how was your day? did you hear from prosecutors? 

Christen Press (18:12): It was okay, long. Nothing back from them yet unfortunately. Hopefully Monday. How was your day? 

Tobin Heath (18:14): it was emotional. so I don't get to see you this weekend? 

Christen Press (18:15): It's for the best. I'll ask Vince to start chasing them at 9 on Monday. 

Tobin Heath (18.16): why for the best? 

Tobin smirks, fully aware she's fishing for compliments. She watches the three dots bouncing, then disappearing, then bouncing again a few times before she gets a response. 

Christen Press (18:20): I think you know. 

Tobin Heath (18:21): touché

Christen Press (18:24): Look, the Poppy situation, I asked a colleague today. They mentioned it's good to start the process for a restraining order. Obviously it can't go through without a name attached but it means as soon as they're identified, Poppy can get that approved while they bring any criminal charges. It's just an added safety layer. 

Tobin Heath (18:25): nice subject change ;-) thank you, I'll let her know. 

"Heath?" Tobin snaps her head up to the counter where the server is holding up a bag of food, she grabs it with a "thanks" and heads home. 

After dinner, Tobin heads to bed early, the early start and the emotions of the day catching up with her. She sets an alarm for the morning, before staring at her home screen, debating whether to take a risk or not. 

She decides it's worth it, she heads to her contacts and hits the call button. 

After the three longest rings of her life, the call connects, "hey you" she hears from the other end of the line. 

"Uh, hey", Tobin replies, her mouth suddenly dry and her nerves picking up. 

"Are you okay...?" 

"Yep. You?" C'mon Tobin. You literally spent the night with this woman last night. 

"Yeah... Did you phone for any reason?" 

"Sorry" honestly is the best policy Tobin, "you make me nervous. I just wanted to hear your voice" 

Christen giggles, "why do I make you nervous?" 

"Well, to repeat your words, I think you know why"

"You don't need to be nervous with me Tobin"

"Okay, well I just wanted to hear your voice before I go to sleep. Tell me about your day" 

Christen talks through her day, Tobin humming where appropriate to indicate she's still listening but not wanting to interrupt. She feels soothed, calmness washing over her, purely from listening to Christen talk about legal documents and particularly long queue at a sandwich shop. 

"Enough about me", Christen finishes off, "how was your day?" 

Tobin stays with honesty, "it sucked. It shouldn't have sucked because I woke up next to you. But it did suck." 

"I'm sorry Tobin" 

"Yeah me too... Hey, can you talk to me some more? I don't care about what, I just like hearing your voice" 

Tobin closes her eyes as Christen talks about the new TV show she's been watching, then the new yoga mat she's ordered. It's coming from Vietnam and it's completely handmade. 

Tobin feels herself slipping off, the last thing she hears is her new favorite voice, "Tobin...? Tobin...?" 

She wakes up in the morning to a message. 

Christen Press (22.34): Goodnight Tobin, sleep tight.


	9. Chapter 9

Tobin hates weekends without a game. She doesn't know what to do with herself. There's no hours aligned to the hard chill. No pre-match jitters in the tunnel. It's like her body is programmed for game weekends. She can't expend enough energy without it. Laura has given them a rare weekend off, the next time she's expected in training being Monday.

She lays in bed, having not long woken, thinking about what to do for the next couple of days. Her first order of the day is to reply to Christen.

Tobin Heath (08:02): sorry I fell asleep last night. your voice is very soothing and I was super tired! hope you slept well. what does your day hold?

She gets out of bed and brushes her teeth, looking out the window as she does. She pulls on some workout gear having decided on a morning jog in the sunshine.

Heading downstairs, she walks into the kitchen where Poppy and her mom are already up, drinking coffee at the kitchen island. Her mom jumps up, pouring her a mug of coffee and handing it over with a kiss to her cheek.

"Morning honey, sleep well?"

Tobin stretches with a groan, "yeah, I did, I needed that"

"Because you're old" Poppy mutters under her breath.

"The absolute cheek of her!" Tobin exclaims, pointing the comment at her mom. She turns to Poppy, "why don't you go pull some clothes on and join me for a run, then we'll see who's old?"

Poppy nods, "bring it on grandma"

Tobin's phone vibrates on the island, drawing all of their attention to it, she swipes it up and reads a message from Christen.

Christen Press (08:22): I was starting to think you just had no opinion on corporate responsibility, then realized you must have fallen asleep. Heading into the office for the morning. What's your day looking like?

"Ooh, is it Christen?" Poppy teases in a sing-song voice, drawing a laugh from Cindy and a glare from Tobin.

"You're pushing it kid" Tobin replies, putting her phone into her pocket, "go on, get changed so I can beat you running"

Poppy rolls her eyes and slides off her stool, heading upstairs to get changed.

"So, as we're on the topic", Cindy starts, "what is the status of you and Christen?"

Tobin groans, "ugh, I don't know mom. She's very insistent that she's my attorney and nothing can happen until she's not. So I guess the answer is nothing really"

"But you want it to?"

Tobin thinks a second before answering, "I think I do... We've flirted a bit, or more, I've flirted and she's shut me down. There's definitely chemistry between us and although we've kinda toed the line so far, we've not specifically hung out in a romantic way, you know?"

"I do." Cindy confirms, "I mean, she seemed very pleasant when I spoke to her on the phone..."

"Oh mom, she's incredible. She's so beautiful, like insanely beautiful. She's so smart and interesting and she's got a really good heart"

Cindy cocks her head to the side and smiles "oh Tobes, she's really got you in a twist huh?"

"Yes. I guess she does..."

They're interrupted by Poppy coming down the stairs, now in workout gear, "come on grandma, let's get this over with"

Tobin walks past her to the front door, clipping the back of her head on the way, "loser makes lunch" she adds, before heading out of the house.

Poppy turns to Cindy, "jokes on her, I can't cook" and heads out as well.

They race for 3 miles, constantly pushing each other before reaching the local park. Still jogging, Tobin turns to Poppy, "see that tree on the far side by the bench?"

"Yeah" Poppy responds

"First one to reach the tree wins" Tobin says quickly, turning on the jets.

Poppy starts to sprint, catching up with Tobin, just as she's about to pass her, Tobin kicks out to her left, catching Poppy's ankle lightly and causing her to tumble. She runs the last few yards to the tree, evil laughter tumbling out of her as she does.

Poppy stands up, wiping the dirt from her knees, pushing Tobin as she gets near her, "oh my gosh, you're such a cheat! Just because you knew I'd win"

"Dunno what you mean, you must have tripped on air"

"Shut up grandma" she says, flopping on to the ground, trying to slow her breathing and cool down.

Tobin flops down next to her and they both face the sky, next to each other on the ground. Tobin reaches into her pocket, pulling her phone out.

"Smile", she says, snapping a picture of her and Poppy, sweaty and laying in the grass together. She goes into her messages and sends it to Christen before adding a note.

Tobin Heath (10:12): just completed a run with this one. weight session shortly then chill this afternoon. how's the office?

She sends the message then replaces her phone, turning her head to face Poppy.

"How you feeling after everything yesterday?"

Poppy shrugs, "I'm okay. Thanks again for everything"

"I didn't ask you for gratitude Poppy, I asked how you were. I read that note, it was far from nice"

"I just don't get it. Like, since the police asked me, I've been wracking my brain trying to think who'd want to hurt me, and I'm still coming up blank. Back home, maybe, but the only people I know here are you and people at the club and there's no one there I can think of"

"You know none of its true, right?"

"I can take the racist stuff. Growing up black in London doesn't let you hide from racism. I've been told more times than I can remember to "go back to where I come from". Which is comical really, because most the times I heard that, I was under 10 miles from the hospital I was born in and the home I was raised in..." She takes a breath and continues, "I was stopped and searched for the first time at 13, walking home from school. It was always going to happen, being 12 times more likely than a white person to be stopped. I thought about going to university before I got the offer to come here, but black students are disproportionately given lower marks than white students, so what's the point?"

She pauses a moment, catching Tobin's eye. Tobin stays silent, but wills her to continue with a quick nod of the head, not wanting to interrupt the flow of Poppy's thoughts.

"Sorry, I know I'm ranting. I just mean, I get being judged because of the colour of my skin. It's been used against me so many times, it doesn't hurt me anymore. What really hurt me were the comments about football. How I don't deserve my spot, how I'm not good enough... I've struggled with my confidence. I couldn't get a solid place in the WSL, no one there would start me. So sometimes I wonder if that's right, maybe that is the case. I mean, would I have started if it wasn't for your influence?"

Tobin turns on to her side, facing Poppy completely and grabbing her hand. "Poppy, you ARE good enough, okay? And it wasn't my influence. Yeah, I had a word with Laura, but it's her choice to play you. If she doesn't think you're good enough, she wouldn't play you, okay?”

Poppy nods with tears in her eyes. 

“Have you spoken to your parents yet?” Tobin asks

“No… I don’t want them to know” 

“Why not?” 

“Because they will either want to come here or they’ll tell me to go home and neither of those are an option for them. I’ll just let it work itself out” 

“Poppy…” Tobin starts, squeezing her hand as she says it, “you need to tell them. They would want to know, okay? If they’re worried about you being here alone, you can tell them that you’ve got us, mom and I”

“Yeah, but that’s just temporary, right?” 

Tobin is taken aback, “No! Well, it’s as temporary as you want it to be. You can stay as long as you want, okay? Plus, mom loves having another kid to fuss over” she adds with a smirk. 

Poppy stays quiet, a small smile on her face, but definitely still uncertain about the whole situation. 

“Look, I think you should tell them, kid. They’d want to know. I can do it with you if you want, just let me know.” 

“I know… I’ll think about it.”

“Okay”, Tobin turns over onto her back, staring at the sky. “Also, I spoke to Christen about it. She recommended you start proceedings on a restraining order against whoever is doing this. That way, they can’t come near you as and when criminal proceedings are started” 

“Woah” Poppy sighs out, “that makes it sound really serious” 

“Hey, look, it’s probably just some ignorant idiot, but it’s best to cover all of the bases. Let me speak to Christen and see how we get it sorted”

Poppy turns to face Tobin, “You don’t want to help me, you just want another excuse to see your girlfriend!” she jokes. 

Tobin flushes pink, turning back to face Poppy, “well get your own help then!”

“Oh, I’m just joking Toby” she says, poking her in the ribs. 

Tobin jumps, then rolls away before getting up, “Get up loser, let’s go”

Tobin heads home, completing a weight session with the small set up she has in the garage, followed by long shower and a quick lunch, planning to spend the rest of the day relaxing. She fires off another message to Christen. 

Tobin Heath (13:02): hey, how’s the office? might need to take you up on your offer to help with poppy. hope your day is going well. 

She heads back in to the garage for the afternoon, setting up a new canvas and a mix of vinyl paints on a palette and gets to work. Fuelled by the events of the last couple of days, she starts to bring her vision to life on the canvas in front of her. She starts with a similar theme to that of her painting on the bridge. She paints the word EQUALITY in the middle of the canvas, then sections out parts of the canvas around it for different themes – injustice, peace, fear, truth and freedom. She starts creating a color scheme for all of the different sections, deep reds for fear, white for peace, monochrome for injustice. 

Once she’s completed the backdrop of the work, inspired by her conversation with Poppy earlier in the day, she starts to try and understand the extent of the problem by looking up the statistics. Her heart drops as she learns the quantitative evidence. Black people are 2.5 times more likely to be killed by police, 6 times more likely to be imprisoned, twice as likely to be unemployed. Economically, they’re half as likely to go to college, 3 times as likely to live in poverty and half as likely to ever own their own home. She starts to think about how to incorporate these into her work, how they fit into her sections. 

Tobin decides to take a picture of her progress and send it over to Christen, especially after learning she’d actually been a fan of Tobin’s work on the bridge. She sends it with the caption “at least this one is legal lol”. She hits send, then gets a sudden feeling of nervousness that tends to come when she shares her artwork with anyone. She knows she’s good at art, she was told that at school, at youth groups, at home, by her friends and even by some artists she’d met over the years. But a different type of nerves hit when you’re sharing something personal. She compares is to opening up your diary to someone. Tobin decides to pack away for the day, leaving the canvas to dry while packing away all of her supplies. 

Following an evening of dinner and a few rounds of cards, Tobin heads to bed, opening up her text chain with Christen. She looks with a furrowed brow at the chain of unanswered messages. She clicks on the contact at the top, then with a deep breath, hits the call button, wanting to hear Christen’s soft voice again before going to sleep. 

The phone rings three times… “Hey, it’s Christen, leave me a message”. Tobin crooks her head in confusion, and retries. This time the phone only rings for a second, “Hey, it’s Christen, leave me a message”. 

Tobin sets her phone down and stares at the ceiling in her dark bedroom, wondering why Christen would be rejecting her calls. She checks the message thread again making sure she hadn’t said anything untoward, but can’t find anything that would offend. She puts the phone back down and concludes that Christen may be out considering it is Saturday night. She tosses and turns before falling in to a fitful sleep. 

Tobin wakes in the morning, disappointment washing over her as she checks her phone and sees no notifications. Sunday is much the same as Saturday, a couple of workouts, Cardio and Strengthening, followed by lunch. She spends some time sat in the backyard, jotting down some ideas for her latest artwork, how she can translate the idea in her head to something tangible. 

By the afternoon, she gets more and more worked up by the situation with Christen. She decides to bite the bullet and send yet another message. 

Tobin Heath (16:16): hey… haven’t heard from you in a while. just wanted to check you’re okay?

She sees the little “Delivered” notification pop up under the message, which instantly changes to “Read”. She starts to get excited, anticipating those three little dots, which never arrive. She locks her phone and throws it back on the table, shaking her head in frustration, just as her Mom comes out into the yard. 

“Hey sweetheart, what’s going on?”

“Nothing” Tobin grumbles, staring into the distance. 

Cindy stands behind Tobin and puts her hands on her shoulder, “want me to make us some tea and we can talk about it?” 

“Tea?” Tobin exclaims, “Poppy really is rubbing off on you, huh?” she says with a laugh. 

“Is that a yes or a no?” 

Tobin covers her mom’s hand on her shoulder with her own, “yes please” 

A few minutes later, her mom comes out with two mugs of tea and places them down on the table, sitting down the other side from Tobin, both facing out in to the yard. 

Cindy turns to face Tobin, but remains quiet. 

“Christen’s ignoring me” Tobin hurries out, “it’s pathetic, I know, I hardly know her… but after Thursday night, we messaged throughout Friday, then spoke for hours on Friday night. She messaged me back yesterday morning, and nothing since then.”

“Oh honey…” Cindy starts. 

“I know it’s pathetic mom. I feel like such an idiot. I’ve sent like 4 messages with no response. I tried to call her last night, but she rejected them…”

“I’m sure there’s a good reason for it darling, maybe she’s busy?” 

“For the last thirty-odd hours?” Tobin snips back. 

Cindy holds her hands up, “woah there, I’m just trying to help”

“I know mom, I’m sorry”, Tobin rubs her hand over her face, then picks up her tea, taking a sip. She places the mug back on the table, “Maybe I just thought it was more than it was”

“We don’t meet people by accident, darling. They’re always meant to cross our paths for a reason”

“Well maybe that reason was to keep me out of jail”, Tobin scoffs. 

“That’s not what I meant and you know it” Cindy chides. 

“I know mom.” She pauses, wanting to move off of the topic, “Anyway, where’s your fourth daughter?”

Poppy appears at the door, “You called?” 

Tobin jumps, “dude, you scared me! Have you been listening to us?” 

Poppy laughs, “no, I just heard your question as I was walking past”

“Mmhmm” Tobin murmurs “Creeper”

Poppy walks up to Tobin, punching her lightly on the top of her arm. Tobin catches her fist and stands up. Still holding her fist, Tobin sticks her leg out to try and trip up Poppy, but Poppy hangs on with her other hand, refusing to go down. 

“Children!” Cindy barks out playfully, “Stop now” causing both Poppy and Tobin to laugh.

Tobin lets go of Poppy, flopping back down into her chair and finishing off her tea. Poppy sits in the chair facing Cindy and Tobin. 

Tobin’s phone dings from its place on the table and she scoops it up quickly, her face dropping when she sees the notification. 

“Katie and Perry want to know if we want to meet them at the park this evening” 

Poppy scoffs. 

“What?” Tobin asks, “What’s funny about that?” 

“Katie and Perry” Poppy responds, shrugging

“What’s funny about Katie and Perry?” Tobin asks again, her brow furrowed. 

“Just like... Katie and Perry, like Katy Perry?” 

“You’re an idiot” Tobin deadpans, “We going or what?” 

They spend the next couple of hours in the park with Tobin’s sisters and their children, chasing them around and helping them on the climbing frame, helping them to burn off their energy before they settle down for the evening. 

As Tobin settles into bed that evening, she changes the lockscreen on her phone to a picture she took this afternoon of her 5 nieces and nephews at the park. She smiles at the picture, and then opens her messaging app, torturing herself at the “Read” showing underneath her last message. 

The following morning, Tobin arrives early to training. They pull into the car park and Poppy goes to head into the building. Turning back to Tobin, she asks, “you not coming in?”

“Go ahead”, Tobin replies, “I’ll be there in a minute”

She brings up Christen’s office number, justifying her actions by assuming the only reasonable outcome is that Christen must have been kidnapped over the weekend. 

“Good morning, Davidson & Reed, Christen Press’ office. This is Vince speaking”

“Hey Vince, its Tobin Heath” 

“Oh, umm, hi Tobin, how can I help?”

Tobin notices the change in Vince’s voice, the sudden hesitation. “I just wanted to see if Christen is around” 

“She’s in a meeting at the moment, can I help?”

“Umm, yeah, I guess I just wanted to know the latest with my case…” Tobin concedes.

“Oh right… well, there’s been a delay” 

“A delay? What sort of delay?” 

“I’m not sure I’m in the best position to advise…” Vince trails off, Tobin can hear his keyboard clicking. 

“Vince… please tell me what’s going on here” 

Vince sighs, “I can’t Tobin. I don’t really know, okay?”

“Well then put me through to Christen so I can find out!” Tobin says, exasperated. 

“I can’t Tobin, I’ve been asked not to put anyone through” 

“Why?” Tobin gets more frustrated with the lack of response. 

“Look, Tobin, I wish I could tell you what’s going on, but I’m not entirely sure myself. I’ll get Christen to contact you today”

“Somehow I’m doubtful that’ll happen” Tobin replies, her voice dripping with sarcasm. 

“I’m sorry Tobin” Vince responds quietly. 

“Yeah… me too” and with that, Tobin hangs up the call. 

Guilt washes over her with how she treated Vince, he didn’t deserve that. But the guilt is quickly replaced with a bigger feeling of dread. What did it mean that her case had been “delayed”? Why was Vince being so cagey with her? He definitely held back on her. 

In training, Tobin kicks every ball with a bit more power, approaches each challenge a little harder and pushes herself that bit further, fuelled by her frustrations from the last few days. It doesn’t go unnoticed either. 

“Heath!” Laura shouts, waving Tobin over. “What the hell is going on with you?”

“Nothing, Coach”, Tobin replies, staring at the ground. 

“Sort it out Tobin. You’re going to hurt yourself or someone else in a minute” 

But she doesn’t stop, she can’t stop. She’s angry at Christen. She’s angry at whoever is threatening Poppy. She’s angry in general. Angry at the world and all the hate that goes on within it. 

They’re running 2 vs 2 drills, a fast paced offensive to defensive transition game. She’s paired with one of the defenders from the reserves. She tends to be paired with the weakest players on the team for ‘balance’. Normally she enjoys it; she relishes in the challenge, but also enjoys mentoring and coaching the younger players. Today, it just frustrates her more. They’re 2 – 0 down to their opponents, both mistakes by her team mate. On their next defensive play, it’s Tobin that makes the mistake. She’s up against one of their starting midfielders, Amy. Amy gets around her, sending her the wrong way with a clever tip of her shoulders, faking right before taking the ball left. And Tobin falls for it hook, line and sinker. She chases after Amy, and dives in from behind, sending her flying and not getting remotely close to the ball. 

“Heath!” the same shout from Laura. She stands up, dusting off her leg, leaving her opponent writhing on the ground. She heads over to Laura. 

“You’re done for the day. Go get cleaned up and sort yourself out” Laura nods back to where she’s just come from, where the player she took down is standing up gingerly, “if Amy’s injured, you’re going to have some serious making up to do”

Tobin looks over, a realization hitting her with Laura’s words. She sprints back over to the Amy, giving her a pat on the back and apologizing. 

“Don’t worry Tobin, I just twisted my ankle a bit on landing, it feels fine though, I’ll run it off”

Tobin looks at the ground, disappointed in herself, “I’m so sorry Amy, I don’t know what I was thinking” 

She turns back to the locker room and makes her way in, heading for the showers. She stays under the warm spray for a lot longer than necessary. As she’s getting dressed, the others come in from training, she tells Poppy she’ll wait for her in the car and leaves without a word to anyone else. 

Tobin is startled by the car door being opened, “what the hell was that all about Toby?” Poppy asks

“What was what about?” Tobin mumbles

“You could have really hurt Amy, you’re lucky she’s fine” 

“I know Poppy”

“You want to talk about it?”

“No I don’t” 

“Right….” Poppy replies, “you sure? Because I’m not going to lie, I’ve never seen you like that before” 

“I’m sure” Tobin snaps back, turning up the radio, sending the message loud and clear to Poppy that the conversation was over. 

Poppy gets her phone out, checking her notifications and seeing a voicemail. She quickly listens to the voicemail, turns to Tobin, turning the radio down at the same time. 

“That was the police – they said they think they know who’s been threatening me. They’ve tracked the phone number from the messages”

“Wow, that was fast” Tobin replies, “What happens now?” 

“They just said they’ll keep me informed” Poppy slumps back in to her seat

“Where are we?” Poppy asks as Tobin pulls into a space on the side of the road. She looks around the street, nothing familiar to her. 

“Come on” Tobin says, getting out of the car. 

“You going to tell me where we are?” Poppy asks, following Tobin on the sidewalk. 

They go into a building, heading straight for the reception desk. 

“I need to see Christen Press” Tobin says to the receptionist. 

The receptionist nods and opens the gate for Tobin to go through. 

Poppy follows her through, having to walk fast to keep up with her. “Um, Tobin, this feels like a bad idea” 

They enter the elevator, Tobin pressing the button for the third floor with more power than necessary. 

Poppy waves her hand in front of Tobin, “You going to tell me what’s going on here?” 

Tobin remains silent, navigating through the office with Poppy in tow, stopping at Vince’s desk. 

Vince looks up at her wide-eyed, “Uh, hey Tobin, what you doing here?” 

“Is she in?” Tobin asks. 

“It’s 5.30 Tobin, the day is over” 

“Not what I asked Vince”

The door to Christen’s office opens and Christen is there, in the doorway, her purse in her hand, ready to leave for the day. 

“Tobin! What are you doing here?” 

“I need to speak with you and I figured this was the only way considering you’re ignoring me” 

Christen scoffs, “I’m not ignoring you… Anyway, you’ll need to make an appointment with Vince” 

“Oh come on” Tobin throws her hands up. 

Christen stares her down, her resolve crumbling. She backs in to her office, holding her hand out to usher Tobin in. 

Tobin pushes Poppy in ahead of her, and enters the office, closing the door behind them. 

“Uh, hi, I’m Poppy” Poppy introduces herself to Christen, trying anything to diffuse the tension of the situation. 

“Yeah, I know” Christen replies, having received a picture of the girl only a couple of days before. 

“Ooookay” Poppy elongates the word, turning back to Tobin, “Can I go now?” 

“No”, Tobin replies, not removing her gaze from Christen. 

“Tobin…” Christen says softly, “Why are you here?” 

“Poppy” she gestures to Poppy, “You need to help her. With the thing you said, the restraining order or whatever” she breaks her gaze, looking to the floor, the embarrassment of the situation catching up to her. 

“She’s not a client Tobin, she’d need to set up an account” Christen responds

“How does she do that?” 

“Vince can handle it. Set it up with him and make an appointment” 

“Fine, I’ll do that now, you can speak with Poppy and get what you need from her” 

“Tobin, it doesn’t work like that!” Christen responds, exasperated.

“Please Christen. This isn’t about me, okay? I just need this sorted. The police reckon they know who made the threats, so I need you to do this for Poppy… Please” 

Again, Christen’s resolve breaking at the sight of Tobin’s pleading. “Okay… okay. Just, go out there, set up with Vince and I’ll talk to Poppy” 

“Thank you” Tobin huffs out, heading out of the office. She sits down opposite Vince. 

“Everything okay in there?” Vince asks cautiously 

“Yeah, I need to set up an account for Poppy apparently. I’ve asked Christen to do a restraining order for her” 

Vince wiggles his mouse, his screen lighting back up, “now that I can help you with”

“Thanks Vince. Hey… sorry I was a bit of an ass this morning. I was frustrated and I took it out on you” 

“You’re fine Tobin. I don’t know what’s going on, but I hope you sort it soon”

“What do you mean?” Tobin asks

“Well, Friday, Christen came in in a great mood, like, she was whistling when she was walking into the office. She let me go early, even though she still had a load on. Then I got an email on Saturday telling me not to book any new appointments for the time being. This morning, she arrived in an awful mood, told me not to put any calls through or bother her unnecessarily. So I’m guessing something happened this weekend…?”

“Don’t look at me” Tobin responds, “between you and I, she’s been ignoring me since Saturday” 

Vince hums, a serious expression on his face, “something must have happened… but I have no idea what” 

Tobin points at the screen, “let’s get this done before she comes out and gets even angrier at me”, she jokes meekly. 

“Sure Tobin, so I have to run through the terms first, okay?” 

“Shoot” Tobin fires back

“So the cost will be $225 per hour…”

“How much??” Tobin jumps in. 

“$225 per hour. Time is billed in chunks of 7 minutes, so I recommend you keep phone calls to the closest multiple of 7 possible. The same applies to any email or written communication, whereby the hours will be logged by myself or Christen in blocks of 7. We will make you aware of any additional charges as they occur and all charges must be settled on 30 day payment terms from the bill date. Are you okay to agree to all of that?” 

Tobin nods, “It’s daylight robbery, but fine, yeah” 

“Okay, so… the details…” Vince clicks around on his computer, “first name, Poppy, last name…?” 

“Diggs” 

“Great, and what about address?”

“Just put her at my address, she’s staying with us for now anyway” 

“Okay, and where shall I direct the bills?” 

Tobin thinks a moment, she knows Poppy can hardly afford her weekly shopping, let alone an attorney. 

“Just add it to mine please Vince” 

“Okay, that’s all sorted and she’s on the system” 

“Thanks Vince. Hey, how did you and David enjoy the game last week?” 

Vince launches into his experience of watching Tobin and the team, pointing out his highlight being the final whistle, but making sure to be grateful to Tobin. She laughs as he shows a picture on his phone of his husband in their team jersey, cheering in the stands. 

Meanwhile, in Christen’s office, she asks Poppy about the threats she had received. 

“So, tell me from the beginning, what happened?” 

“It started with messages, firstly from some clearly fake account on Instagram, I just deleted them. Then I started getting text messages through, I was a bit spooked that someone had gotten my number, but I just thought they were ridiculous”

“In what way?” Christen asks, taking down notes as they talk

“They were just silly stuff like ‘you suck at football’ and ‘you’re not good enough here’. I just laughed it off and ignored it, blocking the number” 

“Then on Friday, I got the note through the door. I don’t know if it was Friday, or whether it was Thursday night. I only spotted it when I woke up. But that’s when I realized, they must know where I live. And the note was… different. There was the same comments about how I suck at football, that’s what made me link it to the messages, but some of the other stuff…” 

“I’m really sorry Poppy, but I do need to know the context to put in the motion” 

“Stuff like ‘go back to where you came from’, and ‘if you don’t leave, I’ll make you leave’. Actually”, she digs her phone out, “I have a copy of it here, I took a picture of it before I handed it to the police” 

Christen takes the phone from Poppy’s outstretched hand and looks at the note, her face paling instantly. She looks up at Poppy, “do you mind if I send this to myself?”

Poppy shakes her head, “no, go ahead. Everything okay?” 

“Uh… yeah” Christen responds, tapping away on the phone. She returns the phone to Poppy and clears her throat, “that’s all I’ll need for now, I’ll get started on the paperwork and let you know when it’s complete. All we’ll need to do is get a name from the police when the investigation is complete and it’ll go live” 

The door opens and Tobin re-enters, “how’s it going?” 

“We’re all sorted” Christen responds as Poppy stands up, preparing to leave. 

“Cool, Poppy, I’ll meet you out there okay?” Tobin says, ushering Poppy out of the door, closing it behind her. She turns to Christen. 

“I’m sorry for barging in on you like this. I had a really bad day. When Poppy told me they think they know who’s threatening her, I just wanted to get this sorted, I want to keep her safe”

“I know Tobin” Christen says softly, avoiding her gaze

“So how about my deal? I thought it was meant to be ready today?” 

“It’s delayed”

“Yeah, Vince told me that, any reason why? Do I need to be concerned?” 

“No. I’ll get it sorted” 

“Right” 

The room falls silent. Tobin looks at Christen, trying to get some sort of response, but Christen remains looking at the floor.

“Are you going to tell me at any point why you’re ignoring me?” Tobin asks outright, needing an answer

“I’m not ignoring you Tobin” 

“My phone informs me otherwise” Tobin snaps back

“It’s complicated Tobin” 

“How is it complicated?”

“Because it is. Why does it matter anyway?” 

“Because you slept with me and now you’re just ignoring me” Tobin spits out, her voice raised

“I did NOT sleep with you!” Christen replies, incredulous at the accusation 

“Uh, yeah! Ya did!” Tobin replies, eyes wide. 

“Tobin, please. Keep your voice down if you’re going to throw round false accusations” 

“False accusations? They’re not false!” 

“I don’t know when you hit your head real hard, but we did not sleep together”

“Sorry, did I, or did I not stay at your apartment on Thursday night?” 

“Yes, you did”, Christen confirms, her brows knotted in confusion

“And did I, or did I not sleep in your bed with you?” 

“Oh, you cannot be serious” Christen sighs, “yes. Fine, we slept together, but you can’t just be shouting that out at my office or people might think you mean… other things” 

“Other things like what?” Tobin smirks

“You know what I mean”, Christen smiles back

“No, I don’t think I do, you’ll have to confirm for me” Tobin jokes back, enjoying the return of their flirty banter

Christen reduces her voice to a whisper, “they might think you mean s…e…x…” 

“You can say sex Christen, we’re both adults” 

“I’m honestly not sure you are, shouting about sleeping together in an office not realizing it means sex” Christen rolls her eyes. They both fall silent again, wry smiles on both of their faces.

Tobin turns serious, “What the hell happened Christen?”

“I can’t say. Not now. I will, I promise, just not now” 

“So, it’s not in my head?” Tobin asks

“What’s not in your head?” 

“Us. This…” Tobin searches for the right word, “Thing between us. You feel it too?” 

Christen blushes, “I think you know the answer to that” 

“Some confirmation would be nice, I’ve been going crazy here” 

Christen steps around her desk and into Tobin’s space. She leans towards her slowly, their eyes meeting before Christen gets too close for them to maintain eye contact. She places the most gentle of kisses on Tobin’s cheek. 

Tobin’s stomach flips, her senses going wild – all she can see, smell and feel is Christen. 

Christen pulls her head back, but stays where she is next to Tobin, “is that confirmation enough for you?” 

“Uh… yeah” Tobin stutters out, a grin appearing on her face. 

“I just need time, okay? Just give me time” Christen squeezes her hand and heads out of the office. 

Tobin touches her hand to her cheek and heads out behind her.


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Always appreciate the comments, thank you so much for reading and for commenting! 
> 
> Hope you enjoy this chapter.

The next few days are a lot more positive, Tobin’s mood vastly improved, even with the lack of concrete answers from Christen. She feels more confident about the situation though. Plus, she’s definitely willing to wait for Christen. Tobin spends most of her time at training, preparing for the upcoming game at the weekend. She assumes Christen won’t contact her and is unsurprised when that is the case. The most she hears is a phone call from Vince letting her know that her deal with the courts is almost ready to be signed. He books her an appointment for Monday to come in and deal with all of the required paperwork.

“Does that mean I’ll no longer be a client from Monday?” Tobin asks

“I assume so” Vince responds, “I’ve been asked to write your final bill so that normally suggests you won’t be a client anymore”

Tobin smirks, “Thanks Vince, you’re the best”

“What did I do?” he asks, puzzled

“Don’t worry… hey, do you want tickets for the weekend by the way?” Tobin asks, ignoring Vince’s question

“You’re really trying to get me into sports, eh? Out to ruin my weekends”

Tobin laughs, “you don’t have to take me up on the offer man”

“I’m only joking, that would be wonderful”

“Sure Vince, I’ll leave you two at the ticket office”

“Thank you Tobin, take care”

“You too Vince” Tobin hangs up the phone, grinning widely.

On Friday morning, as Tobin and Poppy walk into the training center, they are stopped by Alyse.

“Hey, you two, can you come with me?” she asks seriously

They follow her upstairs into her office, where two police officers and Laura are already sat down. One of the police officers stands up and Tobin recognizes him as the detective from the station who took Poppy’s statement.

“Hi Poppy, detective Samson, I took your statement?”

“I remember… is everything okay? Why are you here?”

“We identified the individual who threatened you, she’s in custody down at the station”

“Who was it?” Tobin jumps in, eager to know who’d done this to her friend.

“Does the name Alex Reznick mean anything to you both?” the detective asks.

Poppy shakes her head, clueless and turns to Tobin, “I do… but I can’t think where from”

“She used to play here”

Tobin is hit with a moment of realization, “I do remember! She was one of the players that went to Louisville to get me here”

Alyse chimes in, “More importantly, to get Poppy here. Poppy took her international spot. We think that’s where this has come from. She didn’t want to go to Louisville and apparently, she blames Poppy for us trading her there”

“How on earth does she know where I live? How did she get my number?” Poppy asks, not sure whether to point her questions at the detective or Alyse.

“She got your number from one of the other girls on the team”, Laura confirms, “We found that out this morning. She didn’t realize Alex was using it to threaten you, she said Alex had asked for it to see if you could help her with an immigration issue”

“And your home address – she followed you home from practice”, the detective confirmed.

“Followed her?” Tobin asks, “Isn’t she in Louisville?”

“No”, Alyse says, “she refused to report, I guess she’s been staying here since”

“So what happens now?” Poppy asks, quietly

“We’re questioning her now, we think we know all of her reasons for why she did what she did, but we want to hear her side. She doesn’t seem dangerous, so it’s unlikely she’ll be held in custody”

“Doesn’t seem dangerous?” Tobin shouts, angry at the situation, “she followed her home! She posted a threatening letter through her door. How is that not dangerous?”

“Ma’am, I promise you, if we thought there was any danger, we’d keep her. From what we’ve seen so far, she’s incredibly embarrassed and remorseful. We also uncovered another instance of her trying to blackmail someone else. Sometimes people do crazy things out of desperation”

Tobin turns to Poppy, who looks shell shocked, “we’ll get the restraining order sorted today, she won’t be able to come near you”

Poppy’s eyes fill with tears, “I don’t even know her. I’ve never even met her”

Tobin pulls her into her arms, “I know, it’ll be okay. She’s tiny anyway, I’d take her”

Detective Samson pipes up, “Please don’t threaten violence in front of a police officer”, he advises

“Ah I was just kidding… kinda” Tobin laughs out, trying to lighten the mood. She turns to Samson, “thank you for finding out who it was”

“You’re welcome. I’ll let Poppy know if and when she gets released”

Tobin leaves the office and immediately dials Vince.

“Vince? It’s Tobin”

“Hey Tobin, what’s up?”

“Poppy’s restraining order, we have a name, I need Christen to complete the restraining order as soon as possible as I think they’re going to release her today”

“I’ll see what she can do, what’s the name?”

“Alex Reznick” Tobin confirms, then spells it out for Vince.

“Sure, I’ll get that to Christen now”

Tobin hangs up the phone just as Poppy leaves the office. She holds up her phone, “that was Vince, I’ve given Alex’s name for the restraining order”

“Thanks Tobin”, Poppy says meekly.

“Come on”, Tobin says, “last training before match day. I know it’s much easier said than done, but try and keep you mind off it. We’ve done as much as we can for now, okay?”

Poppy nods, but stays quiet as they head towards the locker room.

“What you thinking?” Tobin asks.

“I just… I don’t know. I can’t wrap my head around it. I don’t know what I thought, but I didn’t expect it to be her. At the very least, I thought I would know the person. I half expected a crazed fan or something, but Alex… All that vile stuff she wrote. I just can’t match the two together, you know?”

“Yeah, I do kid. I was as surprised as you.”

“Anyway… time to smash some balls around whilst I imagine her face on them” Poppy says sternly.

“That’s my girl!” Tobin slaps her on the back laughing.

They’re on their way back home when Tobin’s phone rings. Her phone is connected to the cars Bluetooth, so the screen informs both of them that the incoming call is from none other than Christen Press.

“Ooh, better answer quickly, your girlfriend’s calling” Poppy teases.

“Shut up” Tobin replies, answering the call from the steering wheel, “Christen Press, to what do I owe this honor?”

“Hey Tobin, I just wanted to let you know the judge has just approved the restraining order for Poppy against Alex. From this moment onwards, she is not allowed within 1000ft of Poppy, nor is she allowed to contact her in any form”

“Woah, that was fast! Thank you so much. I’m actually in the car with Poppy now”

“Thank you Christen” Poppy shouts into the car microphone.

Christen laughs, “you’re welcome Poppy. I’ll email the paperwork over to you both so you have a copy of it. I’ve also submitted it to the Police database for you”

“Great, thank you. How’s your day going anyway?” Tobin asks, wanting to prolong the conversation

“It’s been good, but I need to go I’m afraid, my next appointment is waiting, I just wanted to let you know as soon as possible”

“Thanks again, Christen, hopefully speak to you soon?” Tobin asks shyly

“Hopefully” Christen confirms and disconnects the call.

“Desperate much?” Poppy mocks, then imitates Tobin, “Please call me Christen, I miss you Christen”

Tobin leans over and smacks Poppy on the arm, “You’re so annoying! I’m going to stop the car in a minute and make you walk back”

“I’ll just phone your mom” Poppy snaps back jokingly

Tobin shakes her head and turns the radio up, drowning out Poppy’s joking.

Tobin heads out for warm up, the atmosphere already buzzing from the amount of people already in the stadium, despite it still being 45 minutes until kick off. Tobin joins the queue for the rows of warm ups, starting with sprints, then jumping jacks, then lunges. Tobin just finishes her line of lunges when Poppy comes up to her and taps her on the arm.

“Why’s your girlfriend here?”

“Huh? What you talking about?”

Poppy points into the stands, and sure enough, there is Christen, sat next to Vince’s husband David.

“Why didn’t you tell me she was coming?” Poppy asks

“I didn’t know she was” Tobin replies, “You sure it’s her?”

“I know you wear contacts Tobin, but it’s definitely her”

Christen turns away from her conversation with David and looks in their direction, giving Tobin a small wave when she catches her eye. Tobin waves back, her eyebrows still knitted in confusion.

“Oi!” Laura shouts over at them as they both snap their heads in Laura’s direction, “You’re not going to warm up stood still, get moving”

Tobin and Poppy join the back of the line again, going through the warm up routine. Tobin showing off a little bit more than usual. She grabs a ball and shouts over to Poppy, her usual warm up partner at this point. They start passing to one another and Tobin starts to show off more and more, adding little tricks in to her routine, a few around the worlds and catching the ball on the back of her neck.

Poppy traps the ball under her foot and looks at Tobin with one eyebrow raised.

“What?” Tobin asks

“You’re so obvious. Showing off for your girlfriend”

Laura calls them over, bringing the warm up to a close as they start to make their way back to the changing rooms. Poppy starts to walk in the opposite direction, Tobin following her eyeline and spotting where she’s headed. She jogs up to her.

“Changing room is the other way”

“I know, I’m going to say hi to your girlfriend and say thank you for yesterday”

“She’s not my girlfriend Poppy, stop trying to wind me up”

“It’s just a matter of time, isn’t it?” Poppy asks, only semi-joking.

As they get towards the block where Christen and David are sat, Christen spots them and starts walking towards the railing at the front.

“What are you doing here?” Tobin asks her as she gets close

“Charming, thought you’d be glad to see me!” Christen says, incredulous

“Sorry, I didn’t mean it like that” Tobin replies, “Very glad, just surprised too, that’s all”

Christen gestures to David, “This is Vince’s husband, David. Vince was moaning like crazy about having to sit through a soccer game today so I offered to take his place. Wanted to see you both at work”

“I warn you, she’s pretty mediocre” Poppy jokes, pointing at Tobin

“Nice try kid” David pipes up, “She’s league leader in assists this season”

Tobin laughs, then pushes Poppy, “see, real fan here”

“Crap, we need to go Tobin, they’ve all gone in” Poppy says, looking round seeing they are the last two on the field.

Tobin turns back to Christen and David, “enjoy the game both”

Christen taps Tobin on the shoulder as she turns away, “Score a goal for me, yeah?”

“You got it” Tobin replies.

Tobin tries her hardest throughout the game to make good on her promise. She comes close with a couple of shots, one gets held well by the keeper, the other going just over the crossbar. It’s a good game for them and they are more dominant than they expected to be and Tobin knows it’s just a matter of time until they get the first goal.

The referee blows the whistle to signify the end of the first half and Tobin starts walking over to the tunnel when she glances over at Christen. Christen throws up her hands in a shrug and mouths “where’s my goal?” to Tobin. Tobin laughs and shakes her head, mouthing back “I’m trying!”

They come out for the second half and it’s much the same. In the 52nd minute, Tobin gets the ball in midfield. She looks up and notices she’s the furthest forward player. She decides to move forward, knowing she can get the better of the defender in front of her. She dribbles towards her slowly, fear evident in the defenders eyes. She fakes left, the defender sticking her leg out to stop Tobin getting through. Tobin takes the opportunity to knock the ball through her open legs and spin around her, now one on one with the goal keeper. She winds her leg back and gets ready to take the shot. She strikes the middle of the ball perfectly, but not quite far enough from the keeper. The keeper gets a hand to it, parrying it out. The next thing Tobin sees is Poppy storming into the box and connecting with the loose ball, smashing it into the back of the net.

The stadium erupts and Poppy jumps in celebration, then runs towards Tobin, “nice assist! Cheers Toby!”

“Good goal kid, nice tracking into the box” she ruffles Poppy’s hair.

As they head back to their own half, Tobin glances over at Christen who imitates pointing to a watch on her wrist. Tobin laughs, getting back in to position.

As the game wears on, they struggle to find a second goal, knowing they really need it for the security of the game. The opposition have started to sit back, hoping to break on the counter attack, but making their defense hard to break down. In the 80th minute, Poppy gets substituted for Amy, who comes on full of energy. Tobin plays the ball into her in the middle of the field and she makes a striding run towards the opposition box. A few yards from the box, she gets tripped up by one of the opposition defenders and the referee signals for a free kick.

Tobin steps up to take the kick which is just outside the box on the right hand side, perfect shooting distance from her left foot. Tobin glances over to Christen and nods, mouthing “watch this”. The referee blows the whistle and Tobin takes a few steps back before running up and connecting with the ball. She curls the ball into the top right hand corner of the goal, the dip and swerve of the kick absolutely perfect. The goalkeeper can do nothing other than watch the ball sail into the back of the net.

Tobin’s team mates swarm her, congratulating her on the goal. As they move away, she jogs over to where Christen is in the stands, pointing up at her, shouting “there you go, that one was for you”, causing the crowd sat round Christen to turn around and figure out who Tobin was gesturing to. Christen goes beetroot red as Tobin jogs back to her half, chuckling as she goes.

The referee whistles for the end of the game and Poppy runs up to Tobin, “That free kick was insane!”

Tobin shrugs, “it’s just what I do”

Poppy pushes her, “so cocky”

Tobin puts her arm around her, “I’ll teach you one day, okay? Come sign some autographs with me”

They head to the waiting crowd, taking pictures and signing autographs for the waiting fans. They make their way around the ground, before coming to a stop in front of Christen and David.

“Tobin! Your free kick was so good! And Poppy, what a goal” David gushes. He takes his phone out, “is it weird if I ask for a picture?”

Tobin chuckles, “of course not.” She takes his phone and pulls Poppy towards her, turning the phone to selfie mode. “Christen, you coming in?”

“Yeah, come on Christen” David says, waving her over.

Tobin takes a picture of the four of them. David asks Poppy about the Euros and whether she thinks she’ll get called up to the England squad. Tobin moves to the side, in front of Christen.

“What did you think? Did you enjoy your goal?”

“I did, very much” Christen replies, beaming. “Now I want your match shirt” Christen jokes playfully.

Tobin taps Poppy and asks for her jacket, “As you please” she says, taking off her shirt, Christen clearly checking her out before she puts the jacket on. She hands over the shirt, “it might be a bit sweaty”

“Sign it for me?” Christen questions, “I want to remember today”

Tobin grabs a sharpie off a nearby visitor, then scrawls on the shirt.

Christen,  
Never forget the day I scored for you  
Tobin <3

She hands the shirt back to Christen who blushes, bunching the shirt up and putting it in her purse.

Poppy turns to her, “Tobs, I’m heading in, you coming?”

Tobin nods, then looks back to Christen, “See you Monday?”

Christen nods, then holds her arms out for a hug, leaning over the railing. Tobin wraps her arms around Christen as best she can over the barrier, inhaling her new favorite scent. “See you Monday” Christen replies quietly.

Tobin pulls away, walking backwards towards the tunnel, “Nice to see you David, see you soon”

After training on Monday, Tobin takes a little longer with her shower, puts on extra deodorant and even goes to the extent of blow drying her hair. She leaves the training center and bumps in to her mom outside.

"Uh, hey mom, what are you doing here?" Tobin asks, confused.

"I'm here to pick up Poppy, as you're going to your appointment this afternoon"

Tobin rolls her eyes, "She's 18! She can get a bus, can't she?"

"Oh Tobin, leave her alone, she's had a rough couple of weeks. Plus with that girl out on bail, I don't want her getting hurt"

"Mom, they spoke to Alex, I would highly doubt she'll come anywhere near Poppy. I think she's pretty remorseful"

"Better to be safe than sorry sweetheart". Cindy looks down at her watch, "you need to get going or you're going to be late"

"Yes mother" Tobin replies sarcastically, "I'm going"

"Will you be home for dinner?"

Tobin thinks before answering, "I'm not sure, could you do me a plate up and I'll heat it up if needs be?"

"Sure darling. Hope it goes well"

"Thanks mom", Tobin responds before heading off to her car.

Tobin parks up outside Davidson Reed and jogs down to the coffee shop she'd visited with Christen before. Figuring she has time, she picks up a to go order for them both, remembering Christen's order.

She heads in to the office, the receptionist waving her though without having to confirm her identity. She makes her way to the third floor, past Marjorie and over to Vince's desk, her nerves increasing by the second.

"Hey Vince, how you doing?" Tobin asks, breaking Vince's tense concentration on his work.

"Tobin! Hey! I'm great thanks, although working on a super tricky document for Christen. She's got me doing some more of the legal work, it's actually really fun. Makes a nice change to scheduling and filing"

"Hmm, I'm sure it's super fun" Tobin laughs out sarcastically, one eyebrow raised.

"Sorry, I forget I'm talking to a jock. You're not interested unless you can do it outside, right?"

"Untrue. Many sports are played inside, Basketball... Indoor volleyball... Ice hockey..."

"I get it" Vince interrupts, a smile on his face, "sorry I didn't make it at the weekend"

"You're not sorry!" Tobin replies, enjoying the banter between her and Vince.

"No, I'm not really! But David is your biggest fan. Keep this up and he'll be leaving me for you"

"No offense Vince, but he is really not my type. You know, cause of the 'he' thing"

Vince laughs then nods towards the door, "head in when you're ready, Christen is free"

"Thanks Vince" she replies, taking a deep breath and heading in to the office.

Christen turns to the door at the sound of it opening, beaming as she sees Tobin enter.

"Hey you, how are you doing?"

"Hey yourself, I'm good, tired. Long session today" she holds up the coffee carrier in her hand, "I bought you coffee"

Christen smiles, "thank you Tobin. That's very sweet of you. Here, come sit down"

Rather than sitting at the desk, Christen picks up a bundle of documents and moves to the sofa by the window, patting the spot next to her.

Tobin sits down, pulling the coffees out of the carrier and handing one to Christen.

"I assume that's the paperwork for me to sign?" Tobin gestures towards the pile of documents, "can you tell me what this delay was yet?"

"Yeah, so about that..." Christen starts, "firstly I'm sorry for going dark on you, I panicked. I should have reached out or at least given you some kind of response."

"Don't worry about that" Tobin interjects, waving her hand, "it's forgotten"

"When I came into the office last Saturday, there was an envelope waiting for me, nothing on the envelope other than 'Christen'. I opened it up and found this" she tips the contents of the envelope on the table in front of them.

The first thing Tobin spots is a picture of herself. Well, her and Christen, walking back up the street from the coffee shop, Christen's arm linked in hers. The second picture is of Tobin leaving Christen's apartment the following morning.

She then spots a note, messily scrawled writing on plain paper:

Not very professional to be shacking up with a client is it? I'm going to ruin you. And when I find out why Tobin's visiting you, I'm going to ruin her too. Get ready for your world to collapse.

Tobin's nerves start up again and she starts to panic a little, but she also has a nagging thought in the back of her mind, but hard as she tries, she can't bring it forward. She shakes her head then looks at Christen.

"So this is why you went quiet?"

"Yeah, can you see why now?"

"Shit. What do you want to do about it?"

"About what?"

Tobin gestures to the pictures and note, "this!"

"Well, funny story. When you marched in here last week with Poppy, I was obviously pretty pissed at first, but when I was talking to Poppy, she showed me the note she received..."

"Right, so what?" Tobin asks, impatiently.

"Look at the note Tobin"

Then it clicks, what was in the back of her mind. She'd seen that handwriting.

"It's the same person!"

"It's the same person", Christen confirms, “I knew then it was just a matter of time before I would have a name”

"Jeez. What's wrong with her?" Tobin asks rhetorically. "She must have posted that note through Poppy's door, then staked out your apartment waiting for me to come out".

"She's a very angry girl"

"How do you know?"

"I went to see her this weekend. I needed to make sure this wasn't going to be an issue. She told me everything, what she'd done to Poppy, and then why she had it in for you. I was just collateral damage, trying to hurt me to hurt you."

"You went to see her?" Tobin asked surprised

"Yeah. It might not have been the best idea, but it seemed to work. She apologized for her behaviour towards me and told me she wouldn't pursue anything".

“And you think she’ll keep her word?” Tobin asks, unconvinced. 

“No, but I am a lawyer, so I made her sign a document confirming she had tried to blackmail me and that if she tried to use any of the information in the future, she would be subject to criminal charges” 

Tobin smiles at her for a moment before speaking, “You’re really clever, you know?” 

“Ha, I’m not really, I’m just trained in how to deal with these situations” 

“Well you’re definitely my hero” 

Christen rolls her eyes, turning back to the paperwork, moving the note and pictures out of the way. "Anyway, here's your deal, get ready to sign 1000 times"

Tobin laughs, "did you not see me on Saturday? I've got excellent signing skills"

Christen rolls her eyes "and excellent confidence apparently" she picks up a stack of papers, bound together with staples and starts working though, "here... Here... Here... Here and here..."

They get to the end of the pile, Tobin shaking the cramp out of her hand. Christen stands up and Tobin copies her.

"Tobin Heath, thank you for your business. You are officially no longer my client" Christen smiles, "well, at least until Vince files this" she holds out her hand.

Tobin takes it and shakes it gently, "it has been an absolute pleasure" she says in a sultry tone.

Christen blushes and Tobin continues, "so now I'm not a client anymore, Christen Press, would you do me the absolute honor of going on a date with me?"

Christen looks her in the eye, smiling so widely, all of her teeth are on display, "absolutely. I would love to"

Tobin smiles back just as widely, "sooo, what now?" She chuckles, her confidence evaporating quickly.

Christen looks at her watch, "well it's 5pm now, so how about we get out of here?" She pauses, then quickly adds, "if you'd like to I mean. If you've got other plans, don't worry. Sorry I shouldn't assume"

Tobin grabs her arm, "Christen, calm down. I'd love to, let's go"

They leave the office and Christen suggests a walk round the park they picnicked at previously. As the sun starts to set, the air gets chillier, Christen shivering a little in the breeze. Tobin shrugs off her jacket, wrapping it around Christens shoulders.

"Thank you", Christen says softly, snaking her arm through Tobin's and leaning in to her slightly, "I'm stealing your body warmth too now"

"Take what you want" Tobin smiles back.

They chat as they walk, more of a slow meander than anything else, neither of them really wanting it to end. They complete a lap of the park, awkwardly stand at the entrance until Christen suggests another lap.

"What are your plans for dinner?" Christen asks shyly

"My mom's doing me a plate, but I can eat that tomorrow if you were thinking of something else?"

"No, that's okay, you go home"

Tobin stops walking and turns to face Christen, "don't do that"

"Do what?"

"You were building up to something, then you stopped yourself. Don't stop yourself around me, okay?"

Christen had always been guilty of a hint of awkwardness. Never wanting to put herself or her feelings on the line, always taking the easy route out.

"So I'll ask again, were you thinking of something else?" Tobin asks, taking Christen's hand in her own as she asks.

Christen looks down at their linked hands, then up at Tobin. "Well, if you want, there's a place near mine that does great pizza."

Tobin squeezes her hand, "great pizza sounds like a great idea" she replies, beaming a smile at Christen.

They continue walking, Tobin not releasing Christen's hand, twisting them around so their fingers are properly linked.

They leave the park, heading back to where Tobin's car is parked outside the office.

"Where shall I meet you?" Tobin asks, taking her car key out of her pocket.

"Oh, I walked in. Any chance you want to drive me? Otherwise you'll have to wait for me to catch up" Christen jokes.

"You're cute" Tobin smiles at her, opening the passenger door for her. Christen gets in the car and Tobin closes the door behind her, jogging round to the driver’s side and jumping in.

"Where to?" Tobin asks, a moment of deja vu hitting her.

"You can park at my apartment and we'll walk from there if that's okay? I just want to run in and get changed".

"Sure, no problem. Hey, I've got a flashback from when I rescued you from the rain"

"You hardly rescued me"

"Umm, I did, you would have been soaked if it wasn't for me"

"I was already soaked!" Christen jokes back, "but thank you. How did you even notice me?"

"Your ass" Tobin says completely seriously.

"You're kidding?"

"Not at all, honesty is the best policy"

Christen shakes her head, "you really are something Heath"

Tobin pulls up outside the apartment and waits outside while Christen freshens up. She shoots her mom a text to let her know she definitely won't be back for dinner.

She looks up just as Christen comes out of the building. Her hair that had been tied up at the office is now cascading in curls around her face, her smart blazer replaced with a bohemian style cardigan.

Christen walks up to Tobin, "you ready?"

Tobin looks her up and down, "you really are beautiful, you know?"

Christen blushes, looking at her feet "no I'm not"

Tobin places her finger under Christen's chin, tilting her head up so she can look her in the eye, "you are Christen. You're the most beautiful woman I've ever seen. Especially when you have your hair down and curly like that, it's super sexy" she adds a wink at the end, lightening the intensity of the moment.

Christen takes a couple of steps away from Tobin, then turns back, reaching out her hand, "come on, I'm starving".

Tobin takes her hand, intertwining their fingers again, loving this new side of their relationship. It feels even more natural than Tobin expected, yet still setting Tobin's body on fire.

They get to the pizza place, it's a casual restaurant much to Tobin's relief, not exactly dressed to impress in a t-shirt, jacket and ripped jeans. They get shown to a booth along the side wall of the restaurant and sit down facing one another.

"Do you fancy a bottle of wine again?" Christen asks.

"I'd love to, but I've got training in the morning, so I'm afraid I'll be sticking to water. You can though"

"No, I'll have water too"

"Christen, you're doing it again"

"What?"

"That thing where you say what you think I want you to say. If you want wine, have wine. Have a whole bottle if you really want, I'll make sure you get home safely"

Christen smiles, tilting her head to the side and gazing at Tobin, "how are you real?"

Tobin chuckles, "don't speak too soon. I have plenty of flaws"

"Oh yeah, like what?"

"I snore, for one"

"Don't we all?"

"I don't cook. At all"

"That's what takeaways and restaurants are for"

The waitress comes over, asking for their order, "I'll have water" she says to the waitress, then turns to Christen, "which wine do you want?"

Christen shoots her a smile, then turns to the waitress, "just a small glass of the Merlot please"

They decide to share a pizza and a salad and take their time with their meal, the food going cold as they talk and talk, learning more about each other. After they finish, the waitress comes over to clear their plates, "Hi ladies, would you be wanting dessert tonight? I'm afraid all we have this evening is homemade tiramisu"

"Mmm" Tobin hums out, "I love tiramisu"

"Is that a yes to tiramisu?" The waitress asks.

"No, I'm good thank you, I really shouldn't"

"Tell you what", Christen chimes in, "we'll have one portion of the tiramisu and two spoons please"

"Sure thing, I'll be right over"

They share the dessert, until there is only one mouthful left. Tobin gestures towards Christen, "You have it"

"No, no, you have it. After all, you love tiramisu" Christen teases

"Please, I insist"

"Fine" Christen concedes, scooping the lasts of the dessert on to her spoon. She takes a tiny bite of it, then leans over the table, holding the spoon up to Tobin's mouth, "we're sharing it"

Tobin opens her mouth and accepts the dessert with a thank you.

The waitress comes over with the check which Christen pays, not allowing Tobin to even consider it after last time they had dinner. They make their way out of the restaurant, Tobin's hand protectively on Christen's lower back as they make their way past the other tables in the restaurant.

"Thank you for dinner" Tobin says as they step out into the chilly night.

"You're welcome" Christen replies, shivering from the cold.

"Come here" Tobin says, opening her arm up for Christen to snuggle in to her. Christen gladly accepts, snaking her arm inside Tobin's jacket and around her firm abs.

They make their way back to Christen's apartment building, pausing outside.

"You coming in?" Christen asks, still cuddling into Tobin, but face on now.

"I'd better not" Tobin replies

Christen furrows her brow, "why not?"

"Because next time I go inside your apartment, I want it to be following a date"

"We just went on a date" Christen questions

"That wasn't a proper date. I want to take you on a real date. You know, flowers and nice clothes and all of that"

"Fine..." Christen concedes, moving back from Tobin and rooting around in her pocket, "here" she says, handing something to Tobin.

"What's this?" Tobin grabs the small tube.

"Put it on"

Tobin looks at the tube, now recognizing it as Chapstick.

"Why?"

"Just do it"

Tobin applies the Chapstick, "will you tell me why now?"

"Because your lips are so dry and I want to properly enjoy our first kiss"

Christen brings her hands up to Tobin's cheeks, cupping them and moving in slowly. Tobin takes a second to react, completely surprised by Christen, but then her hands find Christen’s waist in return, pulling her in so their bodies are flush.

They make eye contact before they get too close and both close their eyes. Their lips meet and for a second, they stay like that, their lips gently pressing against one another, then Christen moves her hands around Tobin's head until they're on the back of her neck and pulls slightly, prompting Tobin to move. She starts to move her lips, sucking on Christen's bottom lip slightly before releasing it and moving again. She wraps her arms around Christen's middle, taking a chance by sliding her hands down to the ass she's been desperate to touch since the moment she saw it.

In response, Christen swipes her tongue on Tobin's bottom lip, Tobin opening her mouth up in response and feeling Christen's tongue exploring her mouth. She grabs Christen's ass a little more forcefully, prompting a gentle moan from the woman in front of her. She slows the kiss and pulls back, resting her forehead against Christens.

They're both panting, still wrapped up in one another. "You sure you don't want to come up?" Christen asks.

"I really do, you have no idea. But I shouldn't"

"Why not?" Christen asks, on the verge of whining.

"Because that kiss alone is making me want to do more than kiss you"

"So?" Christen responds, surprising Tobin

"As much as I'd love that, you mean more to me than that Christen. I want to treat you properly"

"Ugh, why do you have to be so darn good?" Christen chuckles out.

Tobin kisses her again, slightly less urgently and a lot more tenderly.

She pulls back, removing her hands from Christens middle and using her hands to push the hair back from Christen's face.

"Get yourself inside pretty lady, it's freezing out here"

Christen smiles up at her through her eyelashes, "call me when you get home?"

"If you want me to?"

"Yeah, I do" Christen leans forward one last time, landing a tender peck on Tobin's lips.

"Goodnight Tobin"

"Goodnight beautiful" Tobin replies, watching Christen enter the building before taking a deep breath and looking up to the nights sky, thanking the stars and the moon for bringing this woman into her life.


	11. Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you so much for all of the comments and support, it really does help and I love reading them all, so thank you!!
> 
> I'm really not sure about this chapter.. I almost didn't post it. Also, it gets a bit smutty, so if that ain't your thing, don't read the end!
> 
> Let me know what you think. 
> 
> Hope you all have a lovely Valentines Day!

"That was stupid", Perry chides. 

"What was stupid? I thought I was being the perfect Gentlewoman, walking her home, kiss goodnight and asking her on a proper date?" 

"You asked for a proper date the week of Valentines Day" 

Tobin's face drops with the realization, "Crap" 

"Crap indeed little sis... When are you supposed to be going out?" Perry asks

Tobin thinks back to their conversation the night before after Tobin had arrived home. She wanted to make sure they planned their date as soon as possible, not wanting to wait long before seeing Christen again. 

"We've got a bye week, so we agreed on Saturday" 

"The day before Valentines, have you tried booking anywhere?" 

"No..." 

"Well I'm not sure I'd even bother to be honest, we looked around and couldn't find anywhere, and that was last week" 

Tobin runs her hand down her face in frustration, "Damn it..." 

"You'll just have to think of something else" 

"Like what?" Tobin asks, incredulous

"I don't know! You'll figure it out" 

Tobin wracks her brains for the next few hours, trying to get over the panic of planning something in the next few days and thinking of something worth of Christen's time. 

Tobin Heath (12:57): Hey beautiful, how's your day going? 

She smiles as she sends the message, a wave of happiness washing over her. 

Christen Press (12:59): Better now I'm hearing from you, what about you?

Tobin Heath (13:00): Yeah good, I spent the morning with my sister. At training now for the afternoon. 

Tobin Heath (13:00): I actually wanted to ask, how long do I get you on Saturday?

Christen Press (13:02): As long as you want. I have no plans. Might head into the office for a little in the morning, but that's it. What time are you thinking? 

Tobin Heath (13:03): All day...

Christen Press (13:04): All day it is. What have you planned?

Tobin Heath (13:04): Never you mind. Pick you up at 11?

Christen Press (13:05): Sure, at least tell me what to wear?

Tobin Heath (13:06): Dress comfy, you always look incredible anyway. I'll be there at 11. 

Christen Press (13:06): Hey - I'd better hear from you before then

Tobin Heath (13:07): Of course, call you tonight?

Christen Press (13:07): Please. Have fun kicking balls. 

Tobin Heath (13:08): Have fun being super smart and incredible. 

A nightly call becomes their thing, just a quick check in, a chance to vent about their days. Christen tries to get more information out of Tobin about what her plans are for their official first date. 

"Inside or outside?" 

"Both" 

"Are we eating?" 

"I asked for the whole day with you, I'll make sure I give you sustenance" 

"What if I'm allergic?" 

"Are you allergic to any foods?" 

"No. Damn it." 

Tobin laughs, "It's nothing special, okay? I don't want you getting your hopes up for something amazing. It'll just be... chilled" 

"Chilled. Right. I just, I don't really do chilled too well" 

"I'm starting to get that!" Tobin jokes in response. 

"Sorry..." Christen says quietly. 

"Hey, opposites attract" Tobin replies, ever the perfect counterbalance, putting Christen at ease. 

Friday night rolls around and Tobin's phone rings just as she's brushing her teeth. 

Incoming Call: Christen Press 

"Hhhnnnooyyy?" 

"Uh, Tobin?"

"Nyuhh"

"Are you okay??" Christen asks, starting to worry. 

Tobin spits out her toothpaste, "sorry, I was just brushing my teeth" 

"Why did you answer? You could've just called me back when you were done?" Christen says, chuckling 

"I didn't want to miss your call", Tobin says in-between rinsing her mouth and her brush, "wouldn't want to miss our nightly chat"

"Well I suppose that's cute"

"You're cute"

Christen blushes, but tries to keep her voice steady, "thank you... Are we still on for tomorrow?"

"Absolutely!" Tobin replies, causing Christen to smile. 

"11am?" 

"Sharp."

"Will you tell me what we're doing yet?" 

"Nuh-uh"

"Not even a hint?" 

"Patience is a virtue young grasshopper" 

Christen laughs out loud, "are you calling me a bug?" 

"I guess I am" Tobin chuckles out. 

Tobin asks Christen about her day, settling into bed at Christen tells her about her day and her evening which involved her meeting Vince and David for cocktails. 

"You seem to be getting quite close to them, huh?" 

"Yeah, I love hanging out with them, it's refreshing" 

"Are you not concerned with Vince working for you? Like are you allowed to be friends with an employee?"

"There's no official rules around it. Unofficially, maybe, but I guess I don't really stick to them anyway"

"Christen. Whateveryourmiddlenameis. Press. Have you previously dashed the rules?" Tobin asks in a mock horrified voice. 

"Annemarie" 

"Sorry, what now?" 

"My middle name. Annemarie"

"I see. So Christen Annemarie Press. Just the average rulebreaker huh?" 

"I guess so. Flirting with you was probably frowned upon" 

"Excuse me. You did not flirt with me. Me on the other hand, I tried so hard to flirt with you" Tobin laughs. 

"Well it worked didn't it?"

"I guess we'll find out"

"Mmhmm. I guess we will"

"Anyway pretty lady, I need to get some beauty sleep. We don't all wake up looking as beautiful as you" Tobin says, with complete sincerity. 

"Aw, stop it", Christen blushes at the compliment, "see you tomorrow?" 

"Can't wait" 

"Me either, night Tobin"

"Goodnight Christen, sweet dreams" 

Tobin places her phone on her bedside table, then rolls over, getting comfortable. She falls asleep in a mixture of fear and excitement for the day ahead tomorrow, unsure whether her plans will be a success or not. 

Tobin takes a deep breath, then knocks on the door of Christen's apartment. She takes a step back from the door, not sure what to do with her hands. Just calm down, she thinks, it's just Christen. 

The door swings open and the raven haired beauty greets her with a beaming smile "hey, you're early!" 

"Uh, yeah, sorry. I wanted to make sure I was on time" Tobin says nervously, then raises her hands, presenting Christen with an orange orchid, "this is for you" 

"Wow Tobin, this is beautiful, thank you!" Christen gushes, "do you want to come in quickly while I get this situated?" 

"Sure" Tobin replies, entering the apartment and pushing the door closed behind her. 

"I didn't even realize you could get orange orchids" Christen muses.

"Me neither. I planned on buying you a bunch of flowers but I figured firstly, this will last a lot longer and secondly, orange is my favorite color" 

"Well, I love it, thank you" Christen says as she walks past Tobin, landing a quick kiss on her cheek, Tobin blushing in response. Christen stands the plant on the shelving unit in the living room, alongside the others. 

"Settle in, get to know each other. Make sure you guys play nice" she says pointing to the other plants. 

"What are you doing?" Tobin asks, a smile on her face. 

"Oh Tobin, these are not merely plants, these are my babies!" 

Tobin laughs, shaking her head, "okay crazy lady. Ready to go?"

Christen nods, stepping forward and linking her arm through Tobin's, "lead the way". 

They walk out into the street and Christen heads for Tobin's car. Tobin pulls her back by the arm, "nope, not that way yet"

The momentum of the pull causes Christen to crash up against Tobin and as they start walking, she doesn't move out of Tobin's space. Tobin wraps an arm around Christen in response, the position not ideal for walking down the street but Tobin not wanting to miss the opportunity. 

They get to the door of the coffee shop they'd visited previously. Tobin opens the door and ushers Christen through. They join the queue for the barista. 

"Umm. Tobin. Is your idea of a big first date my local coffee shop?" 

Tobin raises one eyebrow, "yes Christen. We're going to spend the whole day here. I'll buy you a muffin around 4 to keep you going" she says sarcastically. 

"Well there's no need to get sarcastic with me!" 

Tobin puts her hand on Christen's lower back as they approach the barista, "what are you having?" 

"Cappuccino with almond milk please". Tobin orders her own drink afterwards and hands over her card. She turns to Christen, "find us a table and I'll bring the drinks over?" 

Christen nods, moving to a table by the main window, Tobin joining her a couple of minutes later and putting her drink down in front of her. She sits down in front of Christen. 

"So..." Tobin starts, her nerves getting the better of her, "umm, I actually wanted us to start here, because this is where you first took my breath away"

Christen looks down into her coffee, blushing. Tobin continues, wanting to get it out before she loses her nerve, "listening to you talk about your work and the reasons behind what you do just proved to me what an incredible person you are. Your passion is infectious and that's when I knew I wanted to know you more" 

Christen looks up, a smile on her face, but still quiet. 

"Sorry... If this is like, too much, I just wanted to be honest with you" 

Christen reaches across and takes Tobin's hand, "it's not too much. It's just making me nervous, that's all..."

Tobin flips her hand over, so their palms are now touching, "why would you be nervous?" 

"I don't know. I guess, I really want this to go well, you know?" 

"Ha, yes I definitely do. I wrote literal notes on what to do for this date" 

"You're kidding?" 

"Not at all. Perry kindly pointed out its Valentine's Day this weekend, so that kinda put a spanner in the works" 

"Oh my gosh, I hadn't even realized" 

"Yeah, so I really hope this lives up!" 

"I'm sure it will Tobin. Where to next?" 

Tobin taps the side of her nose, "ask no questions, hear no lies my dear" she says with a laugh. She stands up and holds out her hand, "shall we?"

Christen takes Tobin's hand and stands up, "we shall". 

Tobin runs her hand along the brick wall, now a bright shade of white, thanks to the recent paint job. 

"The scene of the crime" Christen notes. 

"Yup" Tobin confirms, "gone forever now" she adds, sadly 

Christen links her arm through Tobin's and leans her head on her shoulder, "hey, as I said before, there's still pictures and memories. Plus, technically it is still there, just under this layer of paint" 

Tobin shrugs, "I suppose."

"Was this part of the plan for today?" 

Tobin chuckles, "are you not enjoying it?" 

"No! I am! It's just..." Christen trails off. 

Tobin unlinks their arms, turning to look at her, leaning her head to the side, "just....?"

"Just. Umm.. because there's not really much here" she says, looking around. 

Tobin bursts out laughing, "I'm sorry, I'm messing with you. This was an unplanned stop, I just wanted to see if they'd done this yet" 

Christen pushes her, "that was mean" she says, pouting. 

"Come on, let's go" 

"Tobin, are we even allowed in here?" Christen whispers, being careful to tread lightly. 

"I sure hope so" Tobin replies at full volume, laughing as she does. 

"It's not funny! It's illegal to trespass and I could lose my job if we get caught" Christen replies, a serious edge to her voice. 

"It's fiiiiiine, I promise. And if it's not, I'll say I was here alone, then you can represent me again and get me out of any charges again, yeah?"

"You realize I never got you 'out' of any charges? I just got you a deal" 

Tobin waves her hand, "yeah well, whatever magic you pulled, do that again... Are you ready?" 

She turns back to face Christen, her hand braced on the door release now behind her. Christen nods and Tobin pushes the double doors open, both of them squinting in the sunlight. 

"Tada!" Tobin says, turning round to gauge Christen's reaction. 

"Um. Sorry, what am I looking at?" Christen looks around at the football pitch and the stands, seeing nothing out of the ordinary. 

"This! All of this!" Tobin gestures around the stadium. 

"I was here last week?" Christen replies, confused, as she walks out into the sunlight. 

Tobin sighs, "don't worry about it..." 

Christen reaches out for her hand, "aw, I'm sorry. How about you tell me what's in that bag and I promise I'll get super excited?" She looks at the bag over Tobin's shoulder.

They start to walk across the pitch, hand in hand. Tobin jokingly looks the other way from Christen "picnic" she mutters. 

"Sorry? What was that?" Christen says playfully, tugging on Tobin's hand. 

Tobin faces forward, but still refuses to look at Christen, "picnic" she mutters again, slightly louder. 

"You did me another picnic?" Christen asks softly. 

"Maybe" Tobin mutters then stops in the middle of the pitch. She releases Christen's hand and swings her bag round, putting it down and grabbing a blanket out, laying it on the ground, before gesturing to Christen to sit down. 

Christen sits on the blanket Criss crossed, Tobin sitting next to her and beginning to unpack the bag. 

"So, a bit different this time, no sandwiches I'm afraid, thought I'd go a bit better" 

"Ooh, now I'm definitely excited." Christen says, a beaming smile on her face. 

Tobin pulls out two Tupperware tubs, handing one to Christen, who opens the lid, "I hope you like it. It's a quinoa, avocado and squash salad with teriyaki salmon" 

"Ugh, Tobin, this looks and smells amazing. Thank you so much", she leans forward and places a light kiss on Tobin's cheek who blushes in response, then gives Christen a set of silverware from the bag. 

"Stop!" Tobin says, just as Christen is about to dig in. "it's not ready yet!" She laughs. 

Christen looks at her questioningly as she roots around in the bag. She pulls out two plastic champagne flutes and a bottle of champagne, "May I interest you in a glass of France's finest?" 

"Oui, mademoiselle!" Christen jokes in an over the top french accent, "although..."

"What?" Tobin asks, her face dropping. 

"I don't want to burst your bubble here, but it does say Product of California on the front of the bottle" 

They both burst out laughing, Tobin popping the cork and pouring them both a glass. Tobin raises her glass, "to our first date" she says, holding her glass towards Christen. 

"The first of many, I hope" Christen replies, touching her glass to Tobin's. 

"Yeah?" Tobin confirms, a beaming smile on her face. 

"Yeah", Christen says shyly. She puts her glass down and picks up her lunch, digging in. "Mmm", she moans, "this is lovely". 

"I'm glad you like it", Tobin replies, starting to eat her tub. 

"So tell me, why are we here?" Christen asks, "I'm assuming you didn't break us into a soccer stadium for no reason" 

"Ha, you got me..." She puts her lunch down, "I'd obviously originally planned to take you to a nice dinner, 3 courses, good wine, the whole lot. But everywhere is booked, and I mean everywhere! So I thought it might be cool for you to get to know me a bit better by seeing my favorite places. If you think it's a lame idea, I can take you home after lunch if you want" 

"Woah, slow down" Christen says, setting her lunch down, "it's a great idea, I want to get to know you more. So tell me, why here?" 

"You sure?"

"Absolutely"

"This is just my happy place. Like, not here specifically, but the soccer field. It doesn't matter where I am in the world and what's going on in my life, I step on the field and it all falls away. It's like my therapy. Some people go to spas, church, nature, but for me, it's here" 

They both continue to eat as Christen smiles at her, enjoying the passion coming from Tobin, "do you not get nervous? Especially with the crowds?" 

"Nah, not anymore. I did a bit when I was younger, but I don't really notice it anymore" 

"I'd be terrified walking out in front of all those people".

Tobin shrugs, "you get used to it". 

"What about the fame side of it?" 

Tobin laughs, "what do you mean?"

"You know, like the amount of Instagram followers you have and all the people screaming your name and wanting your picture?" 

"I don't mind social media, I'm very controlled about what I share and the comments are mostly nice. I don't check DMs, so that doesn't bother me. Outside of the stadium though, I don't get approached regularly or anything like that" 

"Regularly? So it does happen?" 

"Sometimes. Yeah"

"That must be weird" 

"Super weird" Tobin chuckles out.

They continue to chat as they finish their lunch, Tobin packing away the now empty tubs. Christen leans to her side, stretching out and laying down across the blanket, Tobin moving the bag to clear the blanket then stretches out, mirroring Christen, holding herself up on one elbow. 

"Hey" Tobin says quietly, suddenly shy, Christen only inches from her. 

"Hey yourself", Christen smiles, "thank you for lunch" 

"Did you like it?" 

"I did" Christen nods. 

Tobin looks down at Christen from her slightly higher position, her eyes involuntarily flicking down to Christen's lips, then back to her eyes. 

"Tobin?" 

"Yeah?" 

"Kiss me" 

Tobin connects her lips with Christen's, staying still for a second before deepening the kiss. She decides to throw caution to the wind and brings her arm up and around Christen's back, using her mouth and her arm to twist Christen round, lowering her down onto her back on the blanket, Tobin now leaning over the top of her. Christen moans slightly as she opens her mouth, licking her tongue into Tobin's mouth and wrapping her, now free, arms around Tobin, pulling her closer. 

Tobin settles both of her arms either side of Christen's head, pulling back from the kiss for a moment. She gently pushes back Christen's hair and looks into her eyes. 

"You're so beautiful" she breathes out. 

Christen pulls Tobin down onto her, turning her head slightly so her mouth is in line with Tobin's ear, "you're so sexy" she whispers. 

Tobin moans, pulling back slightly and kissing Christen again, sliding her arm underneath Christen, running down her back to her ass. Christen slides her hands down Tobin's sides, then under her shirt, landing her hands on Tobin's bare sides, causing Tobin to shudder. 

Tobin pulls away and rolls on to her back with a long groan. Christen turns over on to her front, her side up against Tobin's. She looks down at her, Tobin's eyes scrunched closed.

"You okay there?" She teases, leaning her chin on Tobin's upper arm. 

Tobin opens her eyes, a wide smile on her flushed face. She moves her other arm over, cupping Christen's cheek. "Not really!" She answers truthfully. 

Christen leans forward, pecking Tobin on the lips, "I've wanted to kiss you again since you arrived to pick me up" 

"Why didn't you? I wouldn't have stopped you" 

"Nerves I suppose. Now we've started though..." She trails off with a smirk, moving on top of Tobin, leaning down and connecting their lips again. Tobin wraps her arms around the woman on top of her, running her hands down to her ass, giving it a squeeze before moving her hands up slightly and under Christen's shirt, giving her a taste of her own medicine. She moves her hands across Christen's back and sides, feeling her warm, soft skin. 

Christen moves her mouth away from Tobin's and ducks down to her neck. She kisses the bottom of her jaw softly, then starts to move down Tobin's neck, a mixture of kisses, nibbles and licks driving Tobin crazy. Tobin feels her arousal building, the ache between her legs starting to build. She moves an arm behind Christens neck and head, the other around her lower back and flips them. 

Christen opens her eyes in surprise, "what's wrong?" 

"You need to stop" Tobin says, breathless. 

"Oh, sorry" Christen rushes out, "am I making you uncomfortable?" 

Tobin kisses her gently then pulls away, looking Christen in the eye, "absolutely not. You're just making me want to do things to you that I can't do here" she says with a smirk. 

Christen blushes, "the feelings mutual, you know?" 

Tobin smiles even wider then moves off of Christen standing up and holding her hand out, "ready for the next location?"

Christen grabs her outstretched hand and jumps up, "I don't know, because you won't tell me where we're going" she says sarcastically. 

Tobin scoffs, "I'll take that as a yes". She folds up the blanket and puts away the glasses before zipping up the bag and throwing it over her shoulder. She turns to Christen and laces their hands together, walking them out of the stadium. 

They get to the car and Tobin puts the bag in the trunk before getting into the drivers seat. Christen leans over as Tobin is starting the car, giving her a quick kiss. 

"Sorry, couldn't resist". 

Tobin pulls into the parking lot, pulling into a space and turning off the car. 

"Ranger Mount Park?" 

"Good reading" Tobin teases, getting out of the car. She waits for Christen to get out of the car before locking it as Christen joins her. Tobin reaches for Christen's hand, not wanting to let go. They start to walk one of the trails of the park, walking in comfortable silence for a few minutes. 

"So, what's the story with this park?" Christen asks, keen to understand the significance, "I've never been out here before".

"It's not far from my mom's house" Tobin starts, "I used to come here as a kid, we used to walk here a lot as a family."

"That's cute, I bet you were a cute kid" 

"Oh I was adorable, seriously. Apparently I was an absolute terror, but I was one cute kid" Tobin laughs. "I actually came here the day after I found out I'd been traded to Louisville. This is where I came to clear my head and to think about what I wanted from the future. This is where it clicked that I should try and play here" 

"Are you glad you did?" 

"Definitely, or I wouldn't be here with you" Tobin replies sincerely. 

"But outside of that..." Christen says, reddening, "before you met me, were you glad you did?" 

Just as Christen asks, they reach the small summit of the trail they've been walking. Tobin stops them and steps just off the path, looking down across the rest of the park. 

"Yeah, I really am. I didn't realize how much I was missing out on being in Portland. Being here and seeing all my nieces and nephews growing up... Even just being here for my mom. It's been good for me. This is exactly where I was when I first phoned Laura and begged her to trade for me" 

"Begged?!" Christen laughs. 

"Pretty much! Nah, I just made clear that I'd happily play here if they'd have me" 

"And luckily they did" Christen says, wrapping her arms around Tobin's middle. 

Tobin wraps her arm around Christen's shoulders in return, "luckily they did" she repeats. 

They complete the 4 mile trail, ending up in the heart of the park, where a small boat lake, children's play park and cafe all meet. 

Christen gasps, causing Tobin to snap her head round to look at her, "what's up?" 

"Hot chocolate" Christen says excitedly, pointing to the cafe, "have we got time?" 

Tobin checks the time, "umm, yep, we're good". 

Christen starts skipping towards the cafe, pulling Tobin along with her, Tobin chuckling at her. They approach the cashier, Christen placing her order, "Medium hot chocolate please" 

"Would you like cream and marshmallows?" 

"Yes please!" She accepts excitedly, she turns to Tobin, "want one?"

"No thank you, I'm good" 

"Ugh, so healthy" Christen rolls her eyes mockingly. 

Tobin hands over the cash before Christen can pay, "hey, I would've paid for that, you've not even bought anything!" 

"Nope. My date, my treat" 

They stroll over to the edge of the boating lake, watching people paddling around in pedalos. 

"That's looks fun" Christen muses. 

Tobin checks her phone, "it'll have to be next time I'm afraid..."

"Next time?" 

"Yeah, date number two? Or have I not earned it yet?" She says with a smirk. 

"Umm" Christen taps her chin in concentration, "I couldn't possibly decide until the evening is over, but you're definitely on the positive side at the moment" 

"Mmhmm. How's the hot chocolate?" 

"So good. Want to try?" She holds the cup out to Tobin who takes a sip. 

"Mmm, that is nice!" She takes a longer drink. Christen reaches out for the cup, but Tobin brings it to her lips again. 

"Woah, don't drink it all!" 

Tobin smirks at Christen as she hands it back. 

"You've got a bit of..." Christen points at Tobin's mouth, where a small moustache of hot chocolate has formed on her top lip. 

"Bit of..?" Tobin asks, knowing full well what Christen is referring to. 

"Wait, I'll get it for you" Christen says cheekily, then leans in, taking Tobin's top lip between her own, sucking it lightly. She pulls away, "all fixed" 

Christen finishes off the hot chocolate, throwing away the paper cup as they head out of the park, onto their final stop of the evening. 

Tobin pulls into the driveway, turning off the car. 

"Tobin, is this your house...?" 

"Uh yeah" 

"Your mom's house?" 

"It is" 

Christen starts to spiral, "isn't it a bit early to be meeting the parents?" 

Tobin reaches out for her hand, "I don't know, maybe. But firstly, you've spoken to her anyway, so it's not like you don't know her. Secondly, and I know it might seem crazy, but it doesn't feel soon. If you really want to know me, I want you to know my people. Thirdly, there really were no other options for dinner and I can't cook..." 

Christen bursts out laughing, "is your mom cooking for us?" 

Tobin joins in laughing, "yeah. I'm sorry. I'm completely lame" 

"No you're not, I just hadn't prepared to meet your mom, what if she doesn't like me?" 

"Trust me, she won't. She'll probably like you more than she likes me".

"Okay" 

"Okay?"

"Yeah. Let's go". Christen opens the door and steps out of the car. 

Tobin moves around to her side and puts her hand on her lower back, ushering her to the house. She opens the door and walks in first, wanting to get the lay of the land. Christen enters behind her and Tobin walks them through to the kitchen, "can I get you a drink?" 

"Just a water for now" 

Tobin goes to the fridge and pulls out a bottle of mineral water before taking a couple of glasses from the cupboard and pouring them both a glass. 

"Mmm, what is that smell?" Christen asks. 

"That's your dinner" comes a voice from behind her. Christen snaps her head round and comes face to face with who she assumes is Tobin's mom. Cindy walks up to Christen, "you must be Christen?" 

"I am. Nice to meet you properly Mrs Heath" 

"Oh gosh, please don't call me that, Cindy, please" 

"Hey mom" Tobin greets her mother. 

"Did you two have a nice day?" Cindy asks

"Don't ask me, it's Christen writing the evaluation" Tobin jokes. 

"It's been wonderful, pretty busy, but I've had a great day" Christen says, looking at Tobin as she does who smiles back in return. 

"Why don't you two head out to the deck and I'll let you know when dinners ready?" Cindy asks, not wanting to interrupt. 

"Thanks mom", Tobin replies, nodding towards the back door for Christen to follow. 

They head out on to the deck where Cindy has placed a bottle of wine, two glasses and a candle and matches on the outside table. 

"Did you do this?" Christen asks. 

"I actually didn't, I guess mom did". 

"Bless her, she seems lovely" 

"She is" 

They chat while the sun sets, Tobin lighting the candle when it does. Cindy pops her head around the door to let them know the food is done. They make their way into the dining room where two places are made up opposite one another. 

"I figured we'd leave you to it, we'll eat at the bar in the kitchen" Cindy says, bringing two plates of food though. 

"Oh my gosh, no, Cindy please join us" Christen pipes up, horrified. 

Cindy looks over at Tobin, "you sure?" 

Christen replies for her, "I've spent all day with Tobin, be nice to speak to someone else" she jokes with a wink. 

"Ouch!" Tobin jokingly clutches her chest, then turns to her mom, "you heard what she said" she says with a shrug. 

Tobin moves around the table to sit next to Christen, with Cindy sitting opposite. 

"Where's the child?" Tobin asks 

"I'm not sure, I called her for dinner, but she's not appeared yet... Christen, I do hope you like it. It's nothing special, just some chicken and veg".

"It looks lovely, thank you Cindy". 

Poppy walks round the corner, "thought we were eating in the kitchen?" She mumbles, engrossed in her phone.

"Christen kindly invited us to join" Cindy responds. 

Poppy looks up, "hey Tobs, hey Christen. How was the big day out?" 

"Good thank you, how's your day been?" Christen replies. 

"Boring. Did Tobin tell you how long she spent planning?" 

Tobin shoots Poppy a warning look. 

"She told me there were notes" Christen says with a smile. 

"It's all she's talked about all week, oof..." Tobin's food connects with Poppy's shin. "Or not, I guess" Poppy mumbles. 

Christen giggles, having cottoned on to the situation taking place under the table. 

They chat through dinner, the conversation flowing easily and Christen feeling comfortable, more comfortable than she'd anticipated. When she finishes her food, Tobin wraps her arm around the back of Christen's chair, drawing patterns on Christen's shoulder with her finger. 

"Would you like anything else, Christen?" Cindy asks, walking back in from cleaning up in the kitchen. 

"No, I'm fine Cindy. Thank you so much for dinner, it's been wonderful" 

"My pleasure, sure you don't want a coffee or anything?"

"We're actually going to head out, mom" Tobin interrupts, knowing Christen's kind nature is bound to keep them here. 

"Okay sweetheart. Christen, it was lovely to properly meet you and thank you for all of the help with this one here and her criminal activities" Cindy adds with a roll of her eyes. 

"And we're out" Tobin says, wrapping her arm around Christen and heading for the door, "Thanks for dinner mom, see you later" 

"Bye darling" Cindy calls out. 

Tobin pulls up outside of Christen's apartment block, an awkwardness descending on them as Tobin turns the engine off. 

Christen looks over shyly, "you coming up?" 

"Would you like me to?" Tobin responds, not wanting to pressure Christen in any way. 

"Yes, I would. Do you want to?" 

"Very much so" Tobin replies with a smile, opening up her door and running round the car to meet Christen as she's about to stand up, holding out her hand to help her up. They head up to the apartment in silence, hand in hand the whole way. 

Christen unlocks the door, kicking off her shoes, "Can I get you a drink?" 

"Uh, sure" Tobin answers, taking off her shoes and jacket before joining Christen in the kitchen area. 

"Wine? Beer?" 

"I'll take a beer?"

Christen takes a beer out of the fridge, popping the top and handing it over to Tobin. She pours herself a small glass of wine and heads over to the sofa, beckoning for Tobin to join her. They sit at opposite ends of the sofa, facing one another. 

"Do I get my marks now? How was our official first date?" Tobin asks.

Christen smirks, "It was great" she says quietly, sipping her wine, "thank you, I know that must have taken a fair bit of planning" 

"Anything for you" Tobin responds cheesily. 

"How can you be so sure?" Christen asks, a sudden seriousness to her voice. 

"What do you mean? Sure of what?" 

"Us. I suppose. You hardly know me, but the things you've said today, the effort you've put in. How are you so confident?" 

Tobin shrugs, thinking before answering, "I don't want to sound super cheesy here and please let me know if this doesn't apply to you, but from the first time we met, it was like we were meant to meet. I just felt naturally drawn to you. I've had that with people in my life before... not quite in the same way. But Poppy, for example, on day one, it was like a message from God to tell me to get close to this girl, help her out. Sorry, I feel like I'm just rambling on..." 

"No, please" Christen reaches out for her arm, "continue" 

"I just knew after the first time we met that we were supposed to. You're supposed to be in my life in some way. If it ends up not being romantically, so be it. But it feels like someone is telling me to keep you close. Does that make any sense?" 

Christen looks down into her glass, swilling the wine around, "Yeah, I get that. I'm not religious, but I'm a big believer in fate. It did feel different when we met..." 

"You feel it too?" 

"I do. I'm just not very articulate when it comes to feelings. I'm usually very guarded."

They fall into silence again, the weight of the moment pressing down on them. 

"So..." Tobin starts, "Does this mean I get a second date?" 

"Yeah, I think you've earned it" Christen chuckles out. 

Tobin drains the rest of her beer, putting the empty bottle on the side table, before lifting her arm, "come here cutie" 

Christen moves over to the other side of the sofa, snuggling in to Tobin's side. She looks up at her, both of them just staring into each other's eyes for a moment. Christen reaches over Tobin, placing her glass on the sidetable, next to Tobin's discarded bottle. She snuggles back in, this time, surging forward and connecting her lips with Tobin's. The angle quickly becomes awkward and uncomfortable, so Christen takes the initiative, pushing up and swinging a leg over Tobin, straddling her on the sofa. 

Tobin gasps at the action, pulling away for a moment and looking up at Christen, "You are unreal" she breathes out, her hands finding Christen's sides, running lightly up and down. Christen gives her a sexy smile, then moves in again slowly, her hands cradling Tobin's cheeks and pulls her in for a deep kiss. Tobin slides her hands around Christen and to her ass, Christen grinding down on her causing Tobin to moan involuntarily, a flood of wetness hitting her as her arousal builds. Christen brings her hands between them, to the hem of Tobin's shirt, pulling away momentarily for confirmation. Tobin nods and Christen lifts, revealing Tobin's sculpted abs, her breasts still hidden behind a Calvin Klein bra. A breathy "wow" escapes Christen's lips, Tobin chuckling slightly at the reaction. Christen trails a hand up from her abs, tracing the middle line of the defined muscles, between her breasts and up to Tobin's face, her eyes following the line of her hand, ending at Tobin's lips, as she ducks in to kiss her again. 

Tobin moves her hands under Christen's shirt, pulling it up, separating for a second while she takes it off, Tobin's hands running all over Christen's now exposed midriff while they kiss. Tobin pulls away, looking at what she's uncovered, her eyes fixing on the swell of Christen's breasts, threatening to break free from the black, lacy bra holding them. She looks up at Christen, wanting to make sure she's still comfortable, the blown out pupils in her wide eyes confirming all Tobin needs to know. She runs her hands up Christen's ribs, leaving them just where her bra starts, kissing the exposed part of Christen's breasts, before kissing up her skin to her neck, opening her mouth and sucking lightly on the sensitive skin while moving her hands to cover Christen's breasts over her bra, lightly running her thumb over the hardened nipple through the bra. The action causing a flood of arousal in Christen, who rocks down into Tobins lap in response. 

"That feels so good", she mumbles out, "take me to bed, Tobin" 

Tobin pulls away, looking Christen in the eye, "You sure?" 

"I've never been more sure" Christen says, kissing Tobin once again. 

Tobin moves one hand under Christen's ass, using the other to push herself up on the back of the sofa. 

Christen yelps in surprise at being lifted, before giggling into Tobin's mouth, Tobin carrying Christen through into her bedroom. She leans down on to the bed, but rather than releasing Christen, she crawls up the bed, while still holding her, laying her down with her head on the pillow, their lips still connecting, tongues fighting for dominance. Christen snakes her hand between them, releasing the button on Tobin's jeans. Tobin pushes them down, wriggling around until she gets them off fully, throwing them to the side of the bed. Christen reaches for her own button, pushing up off the mattress to slip her pants down, her body flush to Tobin's as she does. 

Now both only in their underwear, Tobin runs her hand from Christen's ass, down her leg, pulling it up and around her waist, their centers grinding together for the first time, both of them moaning in response. Tobin feels her underwear getting wetter and wetter, surely now visible. She reaches under Christen, releasing her bra clasp with one hand, leaning back on to her ankles as she removes it. 

"Oh my..." she breathes out, seeing Christen's perfect breasts for the first time, her hardened nipples inviting Tobin in. She ducks her head down and runs her tongue around Christen's right nipple, not yet touching the bud, Christen tensing and writhing at the teasing. 

"Tobin, please" Christen begs. 

Tobin flicks her tongue directly over the nipple, Christen jumping with the shock of it. Tobin wraps her mouth around her nipple, gently flicking at it with her tongue, while massaging her left nipple with her fingers. 

"Tobin, that feels incredible" Christen moans out, pushing her center up, trying to grind it against any part of Tobin. "P...ple...please. I need more" 

Tobin moves her hand down, leaving her mouth in place. She starts at Christen's knee, trailing two fingers up Christen's thigh, who shudders involuntarily. She reaches the apex of Christen's thighs, moaning at the wet heat she can feel through Christen's panties. Christen bucks up into Tobin's hand. Tobin reaches for the waistband of the panties, trying to pull them down, but getting them stuck. Christen reaches down to pull at the other side, wriggling out of the damp panties. 

Tobin moves her mouth up to Christen's neck, "still sure?" she whispers. 

"Tobin, yes. Please. Touch me" 

Tobin moves her hand up again, sucking on Christen's neck as she touches her for the first time. She lightly circles Christen's clit with two fingertips, Christen responding with a downright filthy moan. She moves her fingers down to Christen's entrance, moaning herself at the wetness there. She teases with her fingertips before entering Christen with one finger. 

"More, Tobin, please!" Christen moans out. Tobin obeys instantly, adding another finger and burying them both to the knuckle, flattening her palm against Christen's clit, who cries out in response. 

Christen tugs at the bottom of Tobin's bra, "Get this off". Christen grabs at the hem and pulls it up, Tobin removing her fingers from Christen to get it off, replacing them as soon as she has. She ducks down, kissing Christen deeply, the feeling of their nipples rubbing together almost sending Tobin straight to orgasm. 

"Faster Tobin, please" Christen whines, "make me come" 

Tobin doubles her efforts, placing her thigh behind her hand. She feels Christen's walls start to clamp around her fingers, the woman beneath her shuddering. Christen cries out as Tobin feels the rush of her release on her fingers. She helps Christen to ride it out, bringing her down gently. 

"Oh my gosh... Tobin, that was incredible" 

"Yeah?" 

"Oh yeah" Christen breathes out, still trying to catch her breath. Tobin removes her fingers, kissing up and down Christen's neck and torso as she starts to calm down. Christen pulls Tobin's head up to hers, crashing her lips into hers before flipping them, keeping up the kiss while moving on top of Tobin. Christen starts to kiss down Tobin's body, adding little licks to both of her nipples before trailing her tongue down her abs, to the waistline of her panties. She tucks her fingers into the sides of the panties, then looks up at Tobin for confirmation, who nods down at her in response. 

Christen pulls her panties down, gasping at the wetness between Tobin's legs. She palms Tobin's thighs, pushing them further apart, her mouth watering at the sight in front of her. She glances up to the bedside table, then leans over Tobin to the table. Tobin turns to look, confused, before Christen leans back again, hair tie in her hand. Tobin groans lowly as Christen ties her hair back. 

Christen smirks once at Tobin, then moves her head between her legs, kissing the tops of her thighs on either side of her entrance, Tobin shuddering in response. Christen flattens her tongue, swiping through Tobin, ending at her clit. Tobin bucks her hips up in response, crying out in pleasure as Christen starts to lightly circle her clit. She waits a couple of seconds, then adds a finger, Tobin bucking again. She adds a second finger, then curls her fingers just so, feeling Tobin get tighter with every thrust. She flattens her tongue, stimulating Tobin's clit as much as she can. 

"Yes, Christen, Yes!" Tobin cries out as she reaches her orgasm, tangling her fingers into Christen's hair as she does, trying to be careful not to crush Christen's head with her thighs. Christen tongues at her clit a couple more times, Tobin's whole body spasming as she does. "S..Stop, stop... I can't...". 

Christen pulls back, smiling down at Tobin as she removes her fingers. "Was that ok?" 

Tobin looks up at her, pupils blown, a dreamy look on her face, "I don't think I can walk right now. Or maybe ever again" Christen giggles, "Come here" Tobin reaches out to her, making grabby motions with her hands. Christen collapses on top of her, Tobin wrapping her arms around her. She trails her fingers up and down Christen's back, meeting her lips with her own. She deepens the kiss again, spreading her legs, causing Christen's center to land directly on hers. She starts to grind up into the woman above her, both of them moaning at the feeling. Tobin feels herself starting to build again. 

A few orgasms later, then a few more in the shower, they fall in to bed together, still naked. Christen flips off the light as Tobin wraps her arms around her from behind, their naked bodies pressed together. 

"Best. First. Date. Ever" Christen laughs out, snuggling back into Tobin. 

Tobin chuckles in response, placing a kiss to Christen's shoulder blade. "You need to stop doing that though..." 

"What?" Christen asks, pressing her ass into Tobin again. 

"We need to get some sleep tonight, and if you do that once more, we definitely won't be" Tobin jokes. 

Christen turns over in Tobin's arms, wrapping her own arm around Tobin's middle, kissing her once on the lips, "goodnight Tobin" 

"Night beautiful..."


End file.
